International journal of evidence-based healthcare
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Int J Evid Based Healthc · Sep 2006
A comprehensive systematic review of evidence on the effectiveness and appropriateness of undergraduate nursing curricula.
Objectives The objective of this review was to appraise and synthesise the best available evidence on the effectiveness and appropriateness of undergraduate nursing curricula. Inclusion criteria This review considered research papers that addressed the effectiveness and appropriateness of undergraduate nursing curricula. Studies of higher evidence levels were given priority over lower-evidence studies. ⋯ It was possible to examine the effectiveness of an integrated curriculum model and a subject-centred curriculum model; however, the other two models could not be compared because of a lack of evidence. Conclusion The evidence regarding the effectiveness and appropriateness of undergraduate nursing curricula is notably weak because of the paucity of high-quality comparative studies and meaningful outcome measures of available studies. Therefore, no strong conclusion can be made regarding the effectiveness and appropriateness of undergraduate nursing curricula.
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Int J Evid Based Healthc · Sep 2006
Implementation of oral health recommendations into two residential aged care facilities in a regional Australian city.
Background Residents of aged care facilities usually have a large number of oral health problems. Residents who suffer from dementia are at particular risk. A systematic review of the best available evidence with regard to maintaining the oral health of older people with dementia in residential aged care facilities provided a number of recommendations. ⋯ Conclusion The majority of recommendations provided in the systematic review of oral healthcare for dementia patients were applicable to the applied context. The importance of day-to-day leaders was highlighted by the apparently varied outcomes across target facilities. The quality improvement approach would appear to have considerable advantages when applied to improving practice in residential aged care.