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Objectives: There has been growing concern about doctors' conflicts of interests (COIs) but it is unclear what processes and tools exist to enable the consistent declaration and management of such interests. This study mapped existing policies across a variety of organisations and settings to better understand the degree of variation and identify opportunities for improvement. Design: Thematic analysis. Setting: We studied the COI policies of 31 UK and international organisations which set or influence professional standards or engage doctors in healthcare commissioning and provision settings. Participants: 31 UK and international organisations. Main outcome measures: Organisational policy similarities and differences. Results: Most policies (29/31) referred to the need for individuals to apply judgement when deciding whether an interest is a conflict, with just over half (18/31) advocating a low threshold. Policies differed on the perception of frequency of COI, the timings of declarations, the type of interests that needed to be declared, and how COI and policy breaches should be managed. Just 14/31 policies stated a duty to report concerns in relation to COI. Only 18/31 policies advised COI would be published, while three stated that any disclosures would remain confidential. Conclusions: The analysis of organisational policies revealed wide variation in what interests should be declared, when and how. This variation suggests that the current system may not be adequate to maintain a high level of professional integrity in all settings and that there is a need for better standardisation that reduces the risk of errors while addressing the needs of doctors, organisations and the public. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parent narratives have contributed to ethnographic accounts of the lives of children with autism, but there are fewer examples of parents producing their own autoethnographies. This article explores the affordances of an online blog for enabling a parent of a child with autism to produce a written record of practice which may be considered 'autoethnographic'. Richardson's framework for ethnography as Creative Analytic Process (CAP) is applied to extracts from a blog post in order to consider its contribution, reflexivity, aesthetic merit and impact. The article addresses the methodological and ethical implications of reconceptualizing parents as researchers and the potential contribution of new writing platforms to the development of auto/ethnography. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate why top-down directives aimed at eradicating corruption are ineffective at altering on-the-ground practices for organizations that have adopted industry-wide “gold standards” to prevent bribery and corruption. Using interview and focus group data collected from leading multinational pharmaceutical firms, we unearth antecedents contributing to organizations’ systemic failure to embed their anticorruption policies in business practice. We identify two tensions that contribute to this disconnect: a culture clash between global and local norms, especially in emerging markets and a similar disconnect between the compliance and commercial functions. To overcome these tensions, we suggest that organizations are likely to find it easier to implement a no gifts policy if they cease to rely on local agents embedded in local norms and that there needs to be strong evidence of board-level commitment to antibribery programs, innovative ways of incentivizing compliant behavior, and a fundamental rethinking of organizations’ business model and remuneration practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article again asks, What is nursing science? Who knows? Who cares? The author describes the threat to the survival of nursing science grounded in nursing frameworks and theories. This threat is magnified by the proposal of the Council for the Advancement of Nursing Science (CANS) to change the curricula of PhD education. The aim of CANS is to prepare nurse scientists for lifelong competitive careers in interdisciplinary research, often focused on funding priorities of the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR). Curricula would include preparation for conducting research in topics such as omics, e-science, translation science, biobehavioral science, symptom science, and team science. How can this be nursing science? It is argued that this focus might obliterate nursing's discipline-specific phenomenon of concern, the human-universe-health process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The theory of power as knowing participation in change was derived from Rogers' science of unitary human beings. Following testing and research of the theory and measurement instrument, a practice methodology was developed and the health patterning practice model was initiated. Further developments of the theory are presented and future speculations are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The enigma of defining nursing science is preceded by defining nursing, science, research, and nursing theory--guided practice. The context for exploring the meaning of nursing science is provided through examination of the totality and simultaneity paradigms. Differing views of nursing as a discipline are discussed. The position is taken that nursing is a basic science with various nursing schools of thought that constitute the substantive knowledge of the discipline. Finally, a definition of nursing science is presented that is broad enough to encompass all disciplinary knowledge. Despite current challenges, an optimistic vision is emerging. The nurse theorists and other nurse scholars who are furthering the development of this work are considered to be the cultural creatives of nursing and contributors to a larger movement toward wholeness in science and in society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the 15 years since the introduction of Barrett's theory of power as knowing participation in change and its accompanying measurement instrument, a rapidly growing number of research studies have been conducted using the theory and instrument. This article presents a critical review of this literature, as well as recommendations for further research. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Based on 15 years of research using the Power as Knowing Participation in Change Tool, the authors summarize tool development, including reliability and validity, and discuss specific methodological issues and insights. These include clarity of instructions and complexity of language used in the PKPCT along with response set, norms, and sensitivity of the instrument to detect differences between groups. Problems of linear measurement are discussed along with the appropriateness of both qualitative and quantitative methods of studying power from the view of the science of unitary human beings. Recommendations for further psychometric studies of power are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Comments on an article about the discipline of nursing science. Observation on the need for nursing practice to develop a unique body of knowledge; Discussion on problems in the nursing profession; Arguments about the nursing science.

A letter to the editor is presented in which the author thanks those who contributed articles on the power theory in a previously published issue of "Nursing Science Quarterly."