New online resource for South Island nurses

February 17 , 2011

South Island nurses have a new online tool to help them quickly access quality information to deliver best practice, evidence-based care.

Canterbury District Health Board Director of Nursing at Christchurch Hospital Heather Gray says www.nursingevidence.org.nz is a free online service for all nurses, designed as a one-stop shop for nurses to access a range of web-based information and resources.

“All links on the www.nursingevidence.org.nz website have been reviewed by a panel of 20 nurse educators and health librarians and only links to the best and most reputable sites are placed on the nursing evidence website,” Ms Gray says.

The new website is part of the Ministry of Health-funded Nurses Utilisation of Evidence to Inform Practice project, being managed by the Christchurch-based research organisation, the New Zealand Institute of Community Health Care, on behalf of the Canterbury District Health Board and Nurse Maude.

“The project recognises the internet is an invaluable resource for nurses but there are many barriers to nurses using the internet, such as information being hard to find, information not always being reliable and nurses lacking the confidence or resources to use the internet efficiently.”

Director of the NZ Institute of Community Health Care Chris Hendry says often nurses are working alone or remotely and have limited access to information or support.

“The nursing evidence website will provide them with easy access to the latest and best evidence-based information, as well as a network of nurses for support,” Mr Hendry says.

“All nurses are encouraged to access the new website, provide feedback and share with their colleagues’ links to other websites they find useful.”

ENDS

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