Exploration of attitudes towards research: Operating department practitioners and theatre nurses

A lack of awareness of who should conduct research, conflicting workload priorities, lack of research skills, lack of confidence and lack of supportive relationships are often cited as barriers for undertaking research within the perioperative environment. Building a robust research capacity for Operating Department Practitioners and Theatre Nurses to engage with and lead primary research is critical to develop perioperative clinical outcomes, and for professional and research excellence.

This study aimed to explore the attitudes of Operating Department Practitioners and Theatre Nurses towards research.

An online questionnaire was distributed nationally between 1 October 2022 and 31 December 2022. The questionnaire received 164 responses from 114 Operating Department Practitioners, 44 Theatre Nurses and 6 respondents identifying as other.

These revealed that those with a positive attitude towards research were most likely to have obtained a Master's level qualification (i.e. MSc) and had gained experience in research post-registration. When explored further, the overall positive attitude to research was found to be possibly linked to a belief in the usefulness of research and to prior exposure. The findings of this study can be used to help support, inform and strengthen research in clinical practice and research career aspirations.

Analysis of the data suggests that participants holding a Master of Science degree and having previous experience of research reported a more positive attitude to research. When the specific attitudes to research were explored individually, there was also some evidence that the overall positive attitude to research was more likely to be related to a belief in the usefulness of research.