Nursing involvement in research: an academic pursuit or relevant to nursing practice?

It is said that nursing is 'informed by research'. We evaluated the effect a clinical research project had on the nursing procedure of a nonrotating, permanent continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) team involved primarily in patient care. A trial of the overnight solute clearance as a simple measure of the adequacy of CAPD was carried out and its effect on the following aspects of nursing practice was assessed: 1. Teamwork-Can research be successfully incorporated within the team's work structure in a clinical environment? 2. Nurse's role-Duties of the nurse involved in the research (selection of patients, organization of appointments, collection of samples, and calculation of results). 3. Nurse/patient relationship-Individual knowledge of patients' needs and communication skills employed (necessity for true informed consent). The experience showed us that the participation in research is not only possible, but also interesting from the nurses' viewpoint and of direct benefit to the patients.