A research and journal club: a medium for teaching, professional development and networking

The establishment of a monthly Radiography Research and Journal Club has helped to meet the educational and professional development needs of students and qualified staff in a changing teaching and learning environment. The introduction of degree education presented opportunities for new, student centred learning styles within the pre-registration therapeutic radiography course offered by The Royal Marsden NHS Trust and Kingston University. At the same time the need to provide a forum for academic and clinical staff to learn about the research process in general and current work in radiography and oncology in particular was recognized. A varied, and practitioner-led, programme for the Club and a flexible approach ensures maximum participation. The review of a journal article about telephone counselling for cancer patients and the ensuing discussion is given as an example of the value of one such meeting. The topic raised issues related to current practice and the research methods used provoked a number of questions. As the result of the discussion two of the participants are involved in a research project on a related issue.