Continuing our Researcher Profile series, this month we feature Associate Professor Sharon Latimer. As a Principal Research Fellow at the NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Wiser Wound Care and educator within Griffith’s School of Nursing and Midwifery, Sharon brings over 20 years of clinical experience in caring for older patients. We delve into her journey to becoming a researcher, her advice for newcomers and her current projects.
What path led you to becoming a researcher?
The path that led me to becoming a researcher was long, unplanned and opportunistic. I describe myself as a ‘late-blooming researcher who took the scenic route’. As a child of the 1960s, my life plan was to become ‘just’ a nurse and a mother. A career in research wasn’t a thought bubble or even an option for most women back then. However, in the 1990s, nursing qualifications were finally offered in Australian universities. This sparked a level of excitement in me, and I dreamed about the opportunities ahead of me. So, I began my life-long academic journey and engagement with education, eventually working alongside nurse researchers who had a PhD qualification (mind blowing!!).
As I progressed on this academic journey, I continued to work at the patient bedside, teach at university and raise a family. From 1990 to 2016, I completed a Bachelor of Nursing, a Graduate Diploma in Learning and Teaching, two masters qualifications and finally a PhD (also known as ‘the scenic route’)!
To be honest, as I started my first masters research dissertation, I was filled with a sense of fear and vulnerability. However, at the time I made a few strategic decisions that have stood me in good stead and paved my way to success. These were selecting:
- engaged supervisors who were leaders in their field, establishing two-way expectations and regular open communication
- a research topic directly linked to my clinical experience (my super-power).
As I completed my medication safety research project, I experienced many research ‘firsts’ including obtaining external research funding, presenting at an international conference and my first journal publication. All confidence boosters!
‘I also realised my research could make a real difference in patients’ lives and maybe it might also inspire my children along the way.’
With this taste of success, I plunged into a PhD supported by the same supervisory team (Professor Wendy Chaboyer and Professor Brigid Gillespie). My PhD topic focussed on pressure injuries (or pressure sores), which are a huge global patient safety issue in all healthcare settings. Throughout my PhD journey I experienced many peaks and troughs, but as I progressed and grew, I had many ‘ah-hah’ moments. For example, in addition to my new research and analysis skills, I gained a deeper understanding of the healthcare system and the patient experience. I also realised my research could make a real difference in patients’ lives and maybe it might also inspire my children along the way.
Can you tell us a bit about the projects you are currently working on?
I have undertaken research in a range of areas, including medication safety and nursing education. However, my research into pressure injury prevention and wounds that occur at the end-of-life (skin failure) is what I am best known for. My research is clinically based and focusses on adult patients receiving care in settings such as intensive care, acute care and palliative care.
My recent research in the intensive care unit examined devices used to help prevent pressure injuries, with the findings informing a grant application. This grant led me to establish new collaborations with clinical and research staff across Australia, many of whom I had never met before. Our shared vision and goal to improve patient care and outcomes is what brought us together to embark on this journey with so many positives coming from this experience. For example, I recruited and trained a team of intensive care unit nurses to collect the study data, many of whom have gone on to secure new employment opportunities in research centres and universities.
‘Although we still have a way to go, […] it shows that when a group of people with a joint vision come together, achieving practice change and improved patient outcomes is possible.’
The research I lead into end-of-life wounds has received very little funding—a bitter pill that many researchers unfortunately get to taste—yet this work has had a global impact. This body of work consists of two systematic reviews, which then led to the development of a world-first wound assessment tool for end-of-life skin failure. This work along with the work of others, resulted in the lifting of financial penalties for these wounds in long-term facilities in the United States of America. As an expert in this research field, I was invited to participate in an international roundtable to develop new codes for these wounds. Although we still have a way to go before these codes are accepted by the Centres of Medicare and Medicaid in the United States, it shows that when a group of people with a joint vision come together, achieving practice change and improved patient outcomes is possible.
How do you stay motivated and inspired in your field of research?
‘Day to day, it is my family and colleagues that keep me going…’
I am a naturally curious person and problem solver at heart, and my life and professional experiences have taught me to be critically observant, persistent and to ask ‘why’—all necessary research skills. However, I am not going to lie—conducting and sustaining research can be a difficult path to tread. From a big picture perspective, of course, it is the patients and nurses that inspire and motivate me. But day to day, it is my family and colleagues that keep me going. For me, research is like trying to put a big, multicoloured jigsaw puzzle together. Sometimes the pieces fit together easily, and other times, frustratingly not. This is why it is important to research in areas you are curious about and to surround yourself with colleagues who have similar and differing opinions, because together you will be able to work on that puzzle—and ponder the new questions that arise.
What advice would you give to new researchers just starting out?
I can be a self-doubter at times, so stepping into the research field was quite scary. But I have since learned that many new researchers also share similar feelings, so I have some advice for new researchers. Firstly, conducting research and becoming a researcher are two different things; both take time and lots of perseverance, so be patient and work strategically. Secondly, being in a research team is a bit like a marriage—it is great while everything is rosy—so be selective with the teams you join and the research projects you undertake. This will become easier as you progress in your career. Thirdly, conduct research in the areas you are passionate about because this will sustain your motivation. Finally, everyone in the research world is working toward ‘critical deadlines,’ so it is okay to carve out time for yourself and your loved ones.
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