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Website reviews
Journal of Orthopaedic Nursing (2004) 8, 123–124
Journal of Orthopaedic Nursing
www.elsevierhealth.com/journals/joon
WEBSITE REVIEWS This section is designed to highlight those websites which may be of use or interest to orthopaedic nurses. If you have found any websites of particular relevance to your work or professional development then please let me know at brian. [email protected] and I will review them for the Journal.
Department of Radiology, University of Washington www.rad.washington.edu/teachingfiles.html Diagnostic radiology plays an important part in determining the nature of orthopaedic disease or trauma and in the evaluation of treatments. Orthopaedic nurses need a basic understanding of radiological anatomy not only so they can play a full part in the orthopaedic team but also so that they can educate students and patients. This website provides an ideal resource for professional development and for teaching material. The online teaching files of this Department are divided into six parts, four of which are of relevance to orthopaedics. The Online Musculoskeletal Radiology Book outlines the principles of interpreting X-rays in both traumatic and chronic musculoskeletal problems, although a few more actual radiographs would be helpful here. The Radiologic Anatomy Teaching Modules provide information and materials on radiological anatomy of the whole skeleton and an online muscle atlas, featuring many of the muscles of the upper and lower extremity. These modules are useful for both personal learning and as a resource for teaching, as the radiographs and images can be downloaded. The Quick Cases and Main Radiology Teaching File sections provide case studies of patients with problems of a chronic and trauma nature – X-rays and MRIs with patient details and the chance to test your knowledge before checking the correct diagnosis. Overall an interesting and informative site that is easy to navigate and which provides a wealth of material for both practitioners and educators. doi:10.1016/j.joon.2004.04.004
The Developing Practice Network www.dpnetwork.org.uk The Developing Practice Network (DPN) is a UK network designed to promote, support and enable the development of practice in health care settings. It is supported by the Foundation of Nursing Studies and is multidisciplinary in nature. The aim is to provide a ‘virtual community’ of interested collaborators who are committed to sharing knowledge and experience in practice development. The Network has been set up not only for those in formal practice development roles but also for those interested in hints and tips to help in everyday practice. The membership fee for joining the DPN is £20.00 and is open to all healthcare practitioners not just those in the UK. Membership allows access to the ‘members only’ part of the website with free access limited to an outline of the DPNs work and information about DPN events. The ‘members only’ part of the site has an online database which can be searched to contact others doing similar practice development work. There is also a resources page to download practice development information, data on regional groups and on-line Forums to post questions and network with colleagues. Practice development should be of interest to all orthopaedic nurses but the need to pay and become a member before accessing the majority of this site means that its usefulness is probably limited to those in formal practice development roles or others with a particular interest in this topic.
Orthopaedic Learning Network www.modern.nhs.uk/scripts/default.asp? site_id=41 A previous review outlined the usefulness of the UK’s Department of Health Modernisation Agency site, but the recent addition of the Orthopaedic Learning Network (OLN) to the site means that this is worth revisiting. The OLN site aims to provide information and news for the orthopaedic community. The pages can be accessed without joining
124 the Network but free registration ensures that members receive regular bulletins of updates. The site is designed to help practitioners improve orthopaedic services and one of its strengths is that it not only sets out the ‘theory’ of improvement but also provides real-life examples from health communities which have improved their services. The top 10 tips for redesigning orthopaedic services, developed from the Orthopaedic Collaborative and Action on Orthopaedics programmes, provide useful case studies on, for example trauma services, minimising outpatient waits, minimising cancellations and making best use of theatres. Whilst some might argue that such issues are of more relevance to managers than practitioners the reality is that developing patient focused services will not happen if nurses are content to practice in ways they have always practiced. This site provides excellent examples of practitioners doing things differently for the benefit of their patients. Each case study has contact details included so that further information can be obtained. The ‘Information for Sharing’ section has information on scoring tools such as the Oxford Hip and Knee Scales, guides and toolkits such as ‘The Care of Fragility Fracture Patients’, and a section on Osteoporosis management. There are PowerPoint Presentations by practitioners on issues such as Working across Organisations, which can be downloaded and used for teaching and self-development purposes, as well as links to other sites such as the National Electronic Library for Health. This site is a fascinating insight into the development work currently taking place in the UK in orthopaedic services. The issues and principles are however universal and should therefore be of interest to orthopaedic nurses worldwide.
Website reviews The National Joint Registry www.njrcentre.org.uk In 2003, England’s Department of Health and the Welsh Assembly Government set up the National Joint Registry, similar to those set up many years ago in other countries such as Sweden. The aim is to improve the clinical standards for hip and knee replacements through a database of information collected on all the hip and knee replacement procedures in England and Wales (carried out by the NHS and in the private sector). This will enable information to be gathered on the work of individual Orthopaedic Surgeons and Orthopaedic Departments, as well as on the success (or failure) of particular implants used in surgery. The site itself provides an overview for healthcare professionals and for patients/the public of the aims of the Registry and news in the form of ‘Joint Approach’ the NJR newsletter. There is also some information about events held by the NJR to explain the Registry and data entry. Access to actual data is restricted to authorised users, usually individual consultants, implant manufacturers and hospital Information Technology Departments, although presumably in the future information will be provided on trends in care and standards, as is the case with databases such as the Swedish Registry. The site is a useful insight into the work of the Registry and will no doubt provide much interesting and relevant information as the amount of data available grows. Reviews by Brian Lucas, Editorial Board Orthopaedic Advanced Practice Nurse Whipps Cross Hospital
Journal of Orthopaedic Nursing
www.elsevierhealth.com/journals/joon
WEBSITE REVIEWS This section is designed to highlight those websites which may be of use or interest to orthopaedic nurses. If you have found any websites of particular relevance to your work or professional development then please let me know at brian. [email protected] and I will review them for the Journal.
Department of Radiology, University of Washington www.rad.washington.edu/teachingfiles.html Diagnostic radiology plays an important part in determining the nature of orthopaedic disease or trauma and in the evaluation of treatments. Orthopaedic nurses need a basic understanding of radiological anatomy not only so they can play a full part in the orthopaedic team but also so that they can educate students and patients. This website provides an ideal resource for professional development and for teaching material. The online teaching files of this Department are divided into six parts, four of which are of relevance to orthopaedics. The Online Musculoskeletal Radiology Book outlines the principles of interpreting X-rays in both traumatic and chronic musculoskeletal problems, although a few more actual radiographs would be helpful here. The Radiologic Anatomy Teaching Modules provide information and materials on radiological anatomy of the whole skeleton and an online muscle atlas, featuring many of the muscles of the upper and lower extremity. These modules are useful for both personal learning and as a resource for teaching, as the radiographs and images can be downloaded. The Quick Cases and Main Radiology Teaching File sections provide case studies of patients with problems of a chronic and trauma nature – X-rays and MRIs with patient details and the chance to test your knowledge before checking the correct diagnosis. Overall an interesting and informative site that is easy to navigate and which provides a wealth of material for both practitioners and educators. doi:10.1016/j.joon.2004.04.004
The Developing Practice Network www.dpnetwork.org.uk The Developing Practice Network (DPN) is a UK network designed to promote, support and enable the development of practice in health care settings. It is supported by the Foundation of Nursing Studies and is multidisciplinary in nature. The aim is to provide a ‘virtual community’ of interested collaborators who are committed to sharing knowledge and experience in practice development. The Network has been set up not only for those in formal practice development roles but also for those interested in hints and tips to help in everyday practice. The membership fee for joining the DPN is £20.00 and is open to all healthcare practitioners not just those in the UK. Membership allows access to the ‘members only’ part of the website with free access limited to an outline of the DPNs work and information about DPN events. The ‘members only’ part of the site has an online database which can be searched to contact others doing similar practice development work. There is also a resources page to download practice development information, data on regional groups and on-line Forums to post questions and network with colleagues. Practice development should be of interest to all orthopaedic nurses but the need to pay and become a member before accessing the majority of this site means that its usefulness is probably limited to those in formal practice development roles or others with a particular interest in this topic.
Orthopaedic Learning Network www.modern.nhs.uk/scripts/default.asp? site_id=41 A previous review outlined the usefulness of the UK’s Department of Health Modernisation Agency site, but the recent addition of the Orthopaedic Learning Network (OLN) to the site means that this is worth revisiting. The OLN site aims to provide information and news for the orthopaedic community. The pages can be accessed without joining
124 the Network but free registration ensures that members receive regular bulletins of updates. The site is designed to help practitioners improve orthopaedic services and one of its strengths is that it not only sets out the ‘theory’ of improvement but also provides real-life examples from health communities which have improved their services. The top 10 tips for redesigning orthopaedic services, developed from the Orthopaedic Collaborative and Action on Orthopaedics programmes, provide useful case studies on, for example trauma services, minimising outpatient waits, minimising cancellations and making best use of theatres. Whilst some might argue that such issues are of more relevance to managers than practitioners the reality is that developing patient focused services will not happen if nurses are content to practice in ways they have always practiced. This site provides excellent examples of practitioners doing things differently for the benefit of their patients. Each case study has contact details included so that further information can be obtained. The ‘Information for Sharing’ section has information on scoring tools such as the Oxford Hip and Knee Scales, guides and toolkits such as ‘The Care of Fragility Fracture Patients’, and a section on Osteoporosis management. There are PowerPoint Presentations by practitioners on issues such as Working across Organisations, which can be downloaded and used for teaching and self-development purposes, as well as links to other sites such as the National Electronic Library for Health. This site is a fascinating insight into the development work currently taking place in the UK in orthopaedic services. The issues and principles are however universal and should therefore be of interest to orthopaedic nurses worldwide.
Website reviews The National Joint Registry www.njrcentre.org.uk In 2003, England’s Department of Health and the Welsh Assembly Government set up the National Joint Registry, similar to those set up many years ago in other countries such as Sweden. The aim is to improve the clinical standards for hip and knee replacements through a database of information collected on all the hip and knee replacement procedures in England and Wales (carried out by the NHS and in the private sector). This will enable information to be gathered on the work of individual Orthopaedic Surgeons and Orthopaedic Departments, as well as on the success (or failure) of particular implants used in surgery. The site itself provides an overview for healthcare professionals and for patients/the public of the aims of the Registry and news in the form of ‘Joint Approach’ the NJR newsletter. There is also some information about events held by the NJR to explain the Registry and data entry. Access to actual data is restricted to authorised users, usually individual consultants, implant manufacturers and hospital Information Technology Departments, although presumably in the future information will be provided on trends in care and standards, as is the case with databases such as the Swedish Registry. The site is a useful insight into the work of the Registry and will no doubt provide much interesting and relevant information as the amount of data available grows. Reviews by Brian Lucas, Editorial Board Orthopaedic Advanced Practice Nurse Whipps Cross Hospital