Bay researcher to address USA conference

Julie Harris will travel to the USA to talk about medication administration processes

Hervey Bay academic Julie Harris has added jet-setting to her 2012 to-do list.

In June she heads off to the United States of America to give a presentation at the NETNEP 2012 International Nurse Education Conference in Baltimore.

Ms Harris, a nursing lecturer from the University of Southern Queensland (USQ) Fraser Coast, will present a poster and speak about her research on administration of medication practices entitled: Rewriting the rights to get it right: An explorative study of medication administration practices.

‘I am studying the way nurses apply what they were taught (at university) to their practice,’ she said.

‘The research is part of my PhD work which is a six-year project.

‘I’ve observed nurses administering medications and interviewed them, asking them about their experiences.

‘I’m very proud to say we have some highly skilled nurses working in our Health services.

‘They go above and beyond the fundamental principles they were taught to ensure the safe delivery of medications to the community.

‘Traditionally, medication administration has been taught using a model which is yet to be proven to reflect contemporary nursing practice. My study investigates this model with the view to informing future curriculum development.’

Ms Harris said she was ‘thrilled to bits’ about the opportunity to attend the conference and give a presentation.

She has already had a practice run, presenting her work at the 15th Australasian Nurse Educators Conference in New Zealand in November.
At that conference she also displayed a research poster on problem-based learning for future nurses.

While in the States next year, Ms Harris will work with the Institute of Safe Medication Practice, which is an international leader in medication safety. She intends to develop a collaborative partnership while there.

Last month Mr Harris’s work won the Most Thought-Provoking Award at the Pro Vice-Chancellor’s Research Evening at USQ Fraser Coast.

Contact Details:
Kartina Corcoran, USQ Media, +61 7 4194 3167