News
November 15, 2005
RWJF LAUNCHES NEW RESEARCH INIATIVE TO EXPLORE NURSINGS'S IMPACT ON PATIENT CARE AND SAFETY
"INQRI" proposals accepted through Jan. 13, 2006
Princeton, N.J., November 15, 2005 - As part of its efforts to improve the quality of health care for all Americans, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation today launched a new program, the Interdisciplinary Nursing Quality Research Initiative (INQRI), to generate, disseminate and translate research to improve the quality of care provided in hospitals. INQRI will support interdisciplinary teams of nurse scholars and scholars from other disciplines to address gaps in knowledge about the relationship between nursing and health care quality.
The five-year, $10 million program will be directed by Mary Naylor, Ph.D., R.N., F.A.A.N., Marian S. Ware Professor in Gerontology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, and co-directed by Mark Pauly, Ph.D., professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.
"Despite nursing's pivotal role in the delivery of health care," said Naylor, "there is little rigorous research that demonstrates causal relationships between nursing care and high-quality patient outcomes. INQRI will support projects that examine these relationships and, in doing so, uncover opportunities to make important clinical, health system and policy changes."
The call for proposals issued today encourages applicants under this first round of funding to focus on identifying new ways of measuring the relationship between nursing and quality, or assessing the experience of hospitals that have implemented existing measures of nurses' contribution to health care quality, patient safety and a professional and safe working environment. Two-year grants of up to $300,000 will be awarded in July 2006 to support up to seven interdisciplinary research teams.
"One of the exciting aspects of this program is that it will bring together researchers from nursing and other disciplines—economics, sociology, engineering, political science— to advance understanding of nursing's contribution to the quality of patient care," said Lori Melichar, Ph.D., an economist at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. "Our hope is that the evidence generated by the INQRI research team will be applied in hospitals and will ultimately result in better care for patients."
The INQRI call for proposals is available at www.rwjf.org (under Grant Applications). Brief proposals are due by Jan. 13, 2006. Potential applicants should contact the INQRI program office at (301)571-8161 or visit www.inqri.org for more information.
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The University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing is the only undergraduate Ivy League school of nursing in the country. Despite its relatively small faculty, the School is ranked fifth in federal funding awarded by the National Institutes of Health. Known for its "innovative research, cutting edge education, and integrated clinical practices with a connected global reach," the School also owns and operates a clinical practice which cares for frail elders locally.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation's largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to improving the health and health care of all Americans, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, meaningful and timely change. For more than 30 years the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, the Foundation expects to make a difference in your lifetime.
