Original Article © 2006 International Council of Nurses 123 Blackwell Science, LtdOxford, UKINRInternational Nursing Review0020-8132International Council of Nurses, 200553 2123128Original ArticleResearch priorities for nursing and midwiferyG. McCarthy et al. Correspondence address: Geraldine McCarthy, Professor of Nursing Studies, National University of Ireland, University College, Cork, Ireland; Tel: + 353 21 4901554; Fax: + 353 21 4901493; E-mail: g.mccarthy@ucc.ie. Research priorities for nursing and midwifery in Southern Ireland G. McCarthy 1 PhD, MSN, MEd, RGN, E. Savage 2 PhD, MEd, BNS, RGN, RSCN & E. Lehane 3 MSc, BSc, RGN 1 Professor of Nursing Studies, Department of Nursing and Midwifery, 2 Senior Lecturer, Department of Nursing and Midwifery, 3 Lecturer, Department of Nursing and Midwifery, National University of Ireland, University College, Cork, Ireland MCCARTHY G., SAVAGE E. & LEHANE E. (2006) Research priorities for nursing and midwifery in Southern Ireland. International Nursing Review 53, 123–128 Aim: To identify research priorities for nursing and midwifery in the Southern Health Board area in Ireland for the immediate and long term. Method: Ten focus groups were conducted over a 2-month period with 70 nurses and midwives working in clinical, managerial and educational roles participating. Based on focus group findings and a literature review a multi-item Likert type questionnaire was constructed and administered to 520 nurses and midwives (response rate 95% n = 494). Results: Research priorities were identified as: (1) impact of staff shortages on retention of RNs/RM’s (80%); (2) quality of life of chronically ill patients (76%); (3) stress and bullying in the workplace (76%); (4) assessment and management of pain (75%); (5) skill mix and staff burnout (73%); (6) cardio-pulmonary resuscitation decision making (72%); (7) coordination of care between hospital and primary care settings (69%); (8) medication errors (67%); and (9) promoting healthy lifestyles (64%). Respondents also indicated that these priorities warranted immediate attention. Implications for practice include the need for: (1) emphasis on quality pain control; (2) recognition and exploration of the ethical issues relating to resuscitation; and (3) management of the context within which clinical care is given. Keywords: Clinical, Education, Ireland, Management, Midwifery, Nursing, Research Priorities Literature review: background context In Ireland, as the result of a number of Commissioned Reports (Department of Health & Children 2001a,b) a reform of the health services is underway. Irish Nursing has also been trans- formed in recent years as a result of the Commission on Nursing (Department of Health & Children 1998) with change to an all graduate profession, clinical career paths established and consid- erable changes to nurse management. A research strategy for all healthcare professionals has been published (Department of Health & Children 2001c) and a national research strategy for nursing and midwifery was published in 2003 (Department of Health & Children 2003). The need for a research agenda for nurs- ing and midwifery has become an imperative in a rapidly chang- ing healthcare environment. The move towards setting research priorities for nursing and midwifery in Ireland resonates with developments in other coun- tries for example, the UK (Ross et al. 2004), Spain (Moreno- Casbas et al. 2001), Israel (Glazer & DeKeyser 2000), USA (Forte et al. 1997), Australia (Averis & Pearson 2003), and China (Yin et al. 2000). These studies indicate that research priorities can vary from one country to the next as illustrated in Table 1. Accord-