Editorial

As neuroscience nurses we aspire for best and evidenced based practice, but often we forget about the journey of research from being a new finding or information to translating into practice. Historically, there has been a disconnect between the academic researcher and clinical practice and the transfer of new knowledge has been sporadic at best.

One particular example that comes to mind is triple H therapy where the current clinical practice still continues despite more recent research findings suggesting alternative and modified approaches to care. This is not uncommon with the time lag from research to clinical practice estimated to be around 17 years.

Translating research into clinical practice is an absolute policy priority. For me as an aspiring researcher in the field of neuro epidemiology, translational research extends the basic principles of my research beyond the statistics and numbers. My aspirations are simple and include the translation of my research findings into practice, in order to offer the possibility of improving patient outcomes with a focus on improving the diagnosis and treatment and where possible identifying at risk populations and applying preventative measure.

For this to occur I have had to extend my research beyond nursing and take an interdisciplinary approach that has involved a number of stakeholders from different disciplines as well as the use of social and geographical indicators. This process and collaboration has been fundamental in understanding how my cohort can be interpreted and described to best represent the individuals in my study.

As my research continues to demonstrate degrees of socioeconomic disadvantage I find myself naturally thinking of how I can translate my research to not only address my aims but to also influence the health outcomes of specific populations at risk.

The AJON and ANNA, through the annual scientific meeting, plays a significant role in this journey for any aspiring author or presenter, enabling the sharing of original and innovative research.

From this sharing effective change can occur successfully on both a national and international level. A large part of an editor’s or scientific conference convenors role is providing feedback on how best to present manuscripts and work to facilitate effective translation into practice.

I look forward to continuing to collaborate with members, researchers, clinicians, and other stakeholders and working together to publish quality translational research and working to solve healthcare problems.