Kim Sears

Queen's University | QueensU · School of Nursing

The foundations for critical appraisal of literature have largely progressed through the development of epidemiologic research methods and the use of research to inform medical teaching and practice. This practical application of research is referred to as evidence-based medicine and has delivered a standard for the health care profession where cli...

JBI recently began the process of updating and revising its suite of critical appraisal tools to ensure that these tools remain compatible with recent developments within risk of bias science. Following a rigorous development process led by the JBI Effectiveness Methodology Group, this paper presents the revised critical appraisal tool for the asse...

A key step in the systematic review process is the assessment of the methodological quality (or risk of bias) of the included studies. At JBI, we have developed several tools to assist with this evaluation. As evidence synthesis methods continue to evolve, it has been necessary to revise and reflect on JBI's current approach to critical appraisal a...

Introduction: While primary care is often the first point of contact for adolescents with depression, more than half of depressed adolescents are either untreated or undertreated. A scoping review had been completed to summarize approaches for achieving quality integrated care in primary care focused on adolescent depression. Methods: The scopin...

JBI offer a suite of critical appraisal instruments that are freely available to systematic reviewers and researchers investigating the methodological limitations of primary research studies. The JBI instruments are designed to be study-specific and are presented as questions in a checklist. The JBI instruments have existed in a checklist-style for...

Background Researchers at Queen's University developed a virtual simulation game to serve as a presimulation preparation tool for students learning to perform cardiac resuscitation. Methods A pilot randomised controlled trial compared nursing students who received traditional presimulation preparation to those who received a virtual simulation gam...

Objective: To explore how absorptive capacity has been conceptualized and measured in studies of innovation adoption in health care organizations. Introduction: Current literature highlights the need to incorporate knowledge translation processes at the organizational and system level to enhance the adoption of new knowledge into practice. Absor...

Background Building research capacity in nursing academic units continues to be a challenge. There are a number of external contextual factors and internal factors that influence individual faculty as well as the collective to engage successfully in research. Purpose The overall aim of this opinion article is to provide an overview of the current...

Background: This study assessed reliability and validity of scenario-specific and generic simulation assessment rubrics used in two different deteriorating patient simulations, and explored learner and instructor preferences.Methods: Learner performance was rated independently by three instructors using two rubrics.Results: A convenience sample of...

Virtual simulation gaming (VSG), also known as educationally purposeful gaming, is a new and innovative teaching method which warrants further exploration. In 2018, researchers from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, created an innovative VSG depicting optimal nursing care for patients in cardiac arrest secondary to ventricular fibril...

Objectives: There is a limited understanding of paediatric medication prescribing trends and patterns, thus poorly positioning decision-makers to identify quality and safety concerns related to medication use. The objective of this study was to determine overall medication prescribing trends and patterns among children receiving Ontario Drug Benef...

In 2018, the Queen’s Collaboration for Health Care Quality: A Joanna Briggs Institute Centre of Excellence (QcHcQ) spearheaded an incentive to increase collaboration and international partnerships. As part of this initiative, six library scientists from the partner institutions of the Consortium for Advanced Research Training in Africa (CARTA) were...

Background: Few studies have examined effective methods to prepare learners to participate in simulation-based learning experiences. Similarly, there is limited literature on valid, reliable assessment methods to determine whether clinical simulation learning outcomes have been met. We developed a learning outcomes assessment rubric to support self...

Objectives: The number of predatory journals is increasing in the scholarly communication realm. These journals use questionable business practices, minimal or no peer review, or limited editorial oversight and, thus, publish articles below a minimally accepted standard of quality. These publications have the potential to alter the results of know...

Background: Most prelicensure nursing students receive little to no training in providing care for patients who receive epidural analgesia, despite exposure in clinical settings and the potential for devastating adverse effects. To develop and pilot an epidural workshop for senior nursing students using standardized patients (SPs), and to evaluate...

A national think tank was convened to discuss themes, gaps and trends in nursing simulation research. A secondary objective of the think tank or ‘thought incubator’ was to explore areas of potential collaboration nationally. The PICK method was used to brainstorm during the three-phased meeting. All five researchers worked together to identify gaps...

A multi-phase study to understand patients’ perspectives about partnering in patient safety. A scoping review and descriptive, exploratory study was conducted.

Background: Medication use among Canadian seniors is widespread and increases with the number of comorbidities. Limited evidence exists on medication knowledge among seniors, especially in home care. Purpose: The purpose of this retrospective cohort study was to describe medication knowledge and ability to take medication among seniors admitted...

Medication errors are one of the most common incidents in the hospitals. They can be harmful, and they are even more detrimental for pediatric patients. This study explored the relationship between nursing experience, education, the frequency and severity of reported pediatric medication administration errors (PMAEs). The data for this study were c...

Leg ulceration is a chronic health condition that constitutes a significant disease burden. In this cross-sectional descriptive study, a sample of wound care clinicians were asked to respond to a web-based survey. Based on a review of literature and recommended best practices in the management of mixed arteriovenous (AV) ulcers, a questionnaire was...

This is a prospective cohort study using population-level administrative data to describe the scope of pressure ulcers in terms of its prevalence, incidence risk, associating factors and the extent to which best practices were applied across a spectrum of health care settings. The data for this study includes the information of Ontario residents wh...

Background: Nurse prescribing is a practice that has evolved and will continue to evolve in response to emerging trends, particularly in primary care. The goal of this study was to describe the trends and patterns in medication prescription to adults 65 years of age or older in Ontario by nurse practitioners over a 10-year period. Methods: We co...

The systematic review of evidence is the research method which underpins the traditional approach to evidence-based healthcare. There is currently no uniform methodology for conducting a systematic review of association (etiology). This study outlines and describes the Joanna Briggs Institute's approach and guidance for synthesizing evidence relate...

Background: Medication errors have been shown to occur 4 times more often in the community compared to the hospital setting. Therefore, identifying the patient-related factors within the community that contribute to an increased occurrence of medication errors is required. Objective: To assess patients’ knowledge and understanding of their medicati...

Influencing the Quality, Risk and Safety Movement in Healthcare explores the inner workings of some of the most influential minds in healthcare quality, risk and safety. The book was created in cooperation with the Master of Science in Healthcare Quality graduate program, developed and delivered by Queen's University, Canada. This is the only stand...

Background: Medication errors have been shown to occur 4 times more often in the community compared to the hospital setting. Therefore, identifying the patient-related factors within the community that contribute to an increased occurrence of medication errors is required. Objective: To assess patients’ knowledge and understanding of their medicati...

Background Proper administration of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine (three doses at 0, 2, and 6 months) will likely influence the vaccine’s effectiveness and the impact of vaccination programs on health outcomes. Therefore, we assessed HPV vaccine series completion and on-time dosing in Canada’s largest publicly funded, school-based HPV vacc...

Background: The use of conceptual and theoretical frameworks to organize graduate level curriculum in the preparation of Nurse Practitioners (NPs) is necessary to preserve nursing focus. There is a tendency to conceptualize the learning in these programs as related to skills-based tasks and competencies alone. An assessment of available conceptual/...

Background: It is widely recognized that nursing educational programs must regularly adapt clinical education requirements to changing health system realities and patient need in order to ensure ongoing safety. Increased clinical complexity and diverse clinical settings require a new set of competencies among newly graduated nurse as they need to m...

With a goal to advance the healthcare quality agenda and in response to an identified need within both the educational and healthcare sector, Queen’s University established a Master’s degree in Healthcare Quality. The unique interdisciplinary Master of Science in Healthcare Quality program offers a mix of both theoretical and practical underpinning...

Background: Striving to ensure clear, concise and consistent communication, the Situation, Background, Assessment and Recommendations (SBAR) tool was adopted for use within a multisite acute healthcare organization. Objective: To evaluate the use and effectiveness of the SBAR tool on communication within a multisite acute healthcare organization. M...

Review question/objective: The objective of this systematic review is to compare the use of self-assessment instruments versus an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) to measure the competence of healthcare learners and healthcare professionals. The specific question that will guide this review is: When measuring the competence of healt...

Empowering workers, creating a just culture and implementing a strong knowledge translation reserarch program are some of the core tenants of the new face of patient centred care.

Background The measure of clinical competence is an important aspect in the education of healthcare professionals. Two methods of assessment are typically described; an objective structured clinical examination and self-assessment. Objectives To compare the accuracy of self-assessed competence of healthcare learners and healthcare professionals...

Paediatric medication administration errors (PMAEs) occur frequently, with devastating consequences for children and their families. This study explored the relationship between the nursing work environment and the occurrence of reported PMAEs. In total, 127 potential and 245 actual PMAEs were reported. Workload, distraction, and ineffective commun...

Background: Medication delivery is a complex process which provides numerous opportunities for error occurrence. While the community environment presents a unique potential for medication errors, to date, an exploration of these errors had not been conducted.

Patients' risks from medication errors are widely acknowledged. Yet not all errors, if they occur, have the same risks for severe consequences. Facing resource constraints, policy makers could prioritize factors having the greatest severe-outcome risks. This study assists such prioritization by identifying work-related risk factors most clearly ass...

Healthcare policy makers are highly constrained by costs when deciding among alternative measures. Not all dangers which could be addressed pose the same relative risks that, if an incident occurs, the outcomes will be severe. This paper describes methods to assess, statistically, the effect sizes and significance, of observed systematic upward (or...

Background: Medication errors can cause substantial harm to patients and may lead to significant costs within a health care system. As such, there is value in identifying patient-related risk factors for medication errors. The objectives of this study were to identify patient-related risk factors associated with self-reported medication errors and...

Background: Medication delivery is a complex process which provides numerous opportunities for error occurrence. While the community environment presents a unique potential for medication errors, to date, an exploration of these errors had not been conducted. Objectives: The overall objective of the review was to identify the incidence, prevalen...

This experimental study examined whether the use of clinical simulation in nursing education could help reduce medication errors. Fifty-four student volunteers were randomly assigned to an experimental (treatment) group (24 students) or a clinical control group (30 students). The treatment replaced some early-term clinical placement hours with a si...