CNCF Mission
The Mission of the Cochrane Nursing Care Field (CNCF) is to improve health outcomes through increasing the use of the Cochrane Library and supporting Cochrane's role by providing an evidence base for nurses and related healthcare professionals involved in delivering, leading or researching nursing care. The CNCF produces 'Cochrane Corner' columns (summaries of recent nursing-care-relevant Cochrane Reviews) that are regularly published in collaborating nursing-care-related journals. Information on the processes this Field has developed can be accessed at https://cncnf.cochrane.org/evidence-transfer-program-review-summaries
Our Role
The core functions of the Cochrane Nursing Care Field fall into three major areas related to the production and use of Cochrane reviews:
- Supporting Cochrane Review Groups in the preparation of reviews relevant to nursing;
- Introducing cross-cutting, non-specialised perspectives relevant to all those providing nursing care (nurses, other disciplines such as social work, families and lay caregivers); and
- Enhancing the dissemination and effective uptake of Cochrane reviews.
More specifically, the core functions are to:
- Identify priority topics/questions related to nursing care that are not covered by existing Cochrane reviews
- Identify primary studies in nursing care by searching databases and handsearching relevant journals and conference proceedings, especially those published in languages other than English
- Promote the Field’s perspectives and priorities across Cochrane
- Raise awareness in the role of Cochrane and its resources that are available to support practitioners of nursing care
- Disseminate the findings of relevant Cochrane reviews to the nursing care community
- Identify sources of funding to undertake or complete Cochrane reviews of interest to the Field
Our Team
The Cochrane Nursing Care Field (CNCF) is coordinated from Adelaide, Australia and consists of six groups with members from over thirty-five countries across the world. The CNCF has a ‘hub and spoke’ model in which the Field is coordinated centrally and supported by groups. Central coordination is provided from a dedicated unit within the School of Translational Science at the University of Adelaide.
Leadership Team
Field Coordination
Field Director Assoc Prof Craig Lockwood
Field Coordinator Mr Alex Mignone
Field Groups
Group Coordinator: Nursing Care Review Prioritising Group TBD
Group Coordinators: Nursing Care Language Group Mr Alex Mignone
Group Coordinator: Nursing Care Review Support Group Dr Suzi Robertson-Malt
Group Coordinator: Nursing Care CRG Liaison Group Prof Susan Salmond
Group Coordinator: Nursing Care Review Tagging Group Prof Alison Kitson
Our Funding
The Cochrane Nursing Care Field received funding from the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing for funding establishment costs in 2006-2008. The Joanna Briggs Institute funds the provision of support in the Adelaide Field Coordinating Group office.
Our History
Nurses and others involved in delivering nursing care represent the largest group of health personnel internationally. Increasing the international engagement of nurses, and others associated with nursing care, offers much potential for advancing the aims of Cochrane and contributing to the preparation of Cochrane reviews and their uptake in clinical practice.
In 2006, an international group of nurses associated with the Joanna Briggs Institute first discussed the possibility of establishing a nursing care entity within Cochrane. Following broad support to pursue this further, a concept paper was developed with the assistance of the Australasian Cochrane Centre and formed part of a funding submission to the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing to provide support during the registration process. A Preliminary proposal for a Nursing Care Entity was developed and endorsed by the Directors and members of the twenty-six Joanna Briggs Institute Collaborating Centres at a meeting in Durban, South Africa in August 2006.
The preliminary proposal was also sent to members of Cochrane involved in nursing care. Following substantial revision, the proposal was discussed and endorsed at the Formal Exploratory Meeting to establish a Cochrane Nursing Care Network held in Dundee on 30 March 2007. In December 2007, an application to establish a Cochrane Nursing Care Network was submitted to Cochrane's Monitoring and Registration Group.
Throughout 2008, the sponsors of the application liaised with the Monitoring and Registration Group and members of Cochrane Steering Group to address various comments and concerns raised about the application itself plus broader issues concerning the status of profession-based Fields. In February 2009, a revised application and letters of support were submitted to the Monitoring and Registration Group. The Cochrane Nursing Care Network was officially registered with Cochrane on 25 March 2009. In March 2010 it was renamed the Cochrane Nursing Care Field in order to avoid confusion between the role of networks and Fields.