University of Saskatchewan College of Nursing research coordinator Caitlin Olauson and research facilitator Robin Thurmeier at National Organization of Research Development Professionals annual conference.

NURSE team presents at International Conference

College of Nursing research facilitator and coordinator present at National Organization of Research Development Professionals annual conference.

The Nursing Unit for Research & Scholarship Excellence (NURSE) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) College of Nursing provides supports for nursing researchers to advance their research and scholarship activities.

Research facilitator Robin Thurmeier and research coordinator Caitlin Olauson are two members from the NURSE team. Together, they provide faculty with pre- and post-award support.

Last fall, the NURSE team received funding from the National Organization of Research Development Professionals (NORDP) and InfoReady for their project, “Exploring the role of research development in building a strong culture of research: Co-creating with researchers and research development professionals through participatory diagramming”.

This spring Thurmeier and Olauson travelled to Crystal City, Arlington, Virginia to present their project at the 15th annual NORDP conference.

“NURSE is always looking for new and innovative ways to work with our faculty researchers to help build a positive research culture in the College of Nursing,” said Thurmeier.

“Caitlin and I felt this was an excellent opportunity to present to a room full of international research development professionals, who could also benefit from our on-going work on this project.”

Their presentation covered how research development works within the context of a Canadian U15 university, discussed their on-going NORDP and InfoReady funded project, and engaged in discussion with session participants asking them the same research questions they asked others as part of their study.

“The conference was an excellent opportunity for us to present what we have learned from this project so far and to also gather feedback from other like-minded individuals,” said Olauson.

“It was helpful to hear what other research development professionals experience in their organizations, what barriers they face within their institutions, and what their values and beliefs were regarding research.”

As the NURSE team continues to work on the final stages of this project, their end goal is to better understand what a strong culture of research includes and identify the research development supports and activities that support that culture.

They anticipate completing this research by December 2023.