This page provides links to the findings of a research study undertaken by Richard Lakeman in June-July 1996.
These findings were
presented at:
Lakeman, R. (1996). The
internet: Facilitating and international nursing culture. (Conference
Proceedings). (pp. 261-282). Auckland: ANZCMHN
and published in:
Lakeman, R. (1996). Psychiatric nursing. The Internet: facilitating an
international nursing culture for psychiatric nurses. Computers in Nursing,
16(2), 87-9.
These research findings have provided an insight into how some
psychiatric nurses use the internet and how they believe the internet
will affect psychiatric nursing culture. The qualitative methodology
employed in this research precludes being able to generalise to
wider population, however the themes that have emerged are likely
to be common to many nurses and other members of the internet
community. It is not surprising that the internet as a communication
tool was a recurrent theme throughout the study, as the sample
was drawn from e-mail discussion groups in which communication
was the primary reason for belonging.
If culture consists of the "... values the members of a given
group hold, the norms they follow, and the material goods they
create" (Giddens, 1994, p.31) then there already exists an
internet culture, albeit a rather fragmented and evolving one.
For most people the struggle to learn the norms of behaviour associated
with internet culture is one which they make independent of formalised
instruction. The journey onto the internet is one of discovery
and frustration. The respondents in this study envisaged that
the internet will play a large part in the forming and shaping
of a global psychiatric nursing culture. Their vision for the
future was related to and reflected the benefits that they presently
enjoy, an extension of the use of contemporary applications such
as e-mail.
The shape of the internet is constantly changing as are the applications
which are being used on it. Respondents saw e-mail as a tool for
collaboration, sharing, research and supervision but the form
of e-mail is changing and it may be that text forms of e-mail
will be superseded over time. Internet voice mail, video mail
and video conferencing is already a reality and its increasing
use will alter again the norms of internet communication. Nurse
leaders are required who will pioneer the use of the evolving
technology and explore uses which will benefit the profession
and the individuals whom they serve.
The promise of instantly accessible and relevant information to
psychiatric nurses is someway off yet. Part of the reason for
this is that nurses may expect to be consumers of information
on the internet rather than creators. It is incumbent on nurses
to create and share information resources. This will of course
be contingent on nursing organisations and individuals having
the commitment to resource such endeavours.
The internet has the potential to shape new roles for psychiatric
nurses, for example on line consultancy, counselling, health education
and clinical supervision may be areas that are developed in future.
In education the internet may provide the facility for a virtual
classroom so that students even in remote areas can enjoy similar
levels of tutor support to on-campus students with the added benefit
of working at their own pace in the privacy of their own homes.
In the future the paper journal is likely to be replaced by electronic
versions embellished with multimedia facilities. The internet
provides an opportunity for publications to be distributed more
widely than is possible with CD or paper copies.
It is inevitable that the internet will play a larger role in the lives of many people and change the way information is obtained, used and shared. Even more profoundly the internet will affect the way people communicate with each other across distance. It is unlikely that the internet will replace outright other modes of communication and information sharing. Many people are not comfortable with the technology or do not have access to it. Intellectual property rights, data security and privacy are issues which also need addressing. The challenge to psychiatric nurses is to use the technology in a way which does indeed facilitate a global psychiatric nursing culture.