The increasingly complex requirements of today's nursing practitioners, have been accompanied by demands on nurse educators to look at new ways to facilitate learning in the clinical area (Camiah 1996). In recent years nursing education has undergone a period of major change in many countries through integrating with universities. While nurse educators are striving to respond to changes in education the dichotomy between the theoretical input taught in the classroom and what is practised or experienced on the wards remains a problem (Ashworth & Longmate 1993, Ferguson & Jinks 1994). Dale (1994) postulates that theory provides the basis for understanding the reality of nursing, it would seem reasonable, therefore, to assume that the content studied in the classroom correlates with what the student experiences on the ward. It should also follow that if a gap exists between theory and practice, efforts should be taken for its reduction (Rafferty et al. 1996). According to MacNeil (1997) many initiatives have been introduced in an effort to bridge the theory-practice gap and these have focused around the role of the nurse teacher. These changes in education are redefining the role of the nurse teacher, therefore, the part that they currently play and will play in the future needs to be carefully considered (Phillips et al. 1996b). The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the literature on the theory-practice divide in nursing. First, some of the reasons cited for its existence will be explored. Second, suggested ways of bridging the divide will be considered focusing on the role of the nurse teacher.

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Although regular screening for TC is a controversial issue, nurses should encourage young men to seek medical attention in the event of discovering scrotal abnormalities.

Aims To identify, describe, and summarize evidence from quantitative, qualitative, and mixed‐method studies conducted to prepare nurses and nursing students to lead on and/or deliver compassionate care. Design Mixed‐method systematic review. Data sources CINAHL, Medline, PsychINFO, and SocINDEX (January 2007–February 2018). Review methods Papers were screened by two independent reviewers using an online screening tool and data were extracted using a standardized data extraction table. Parallel‐results convergent synthesis was used to synthesize evidence from included qualitative, quantitative, and mixed‐method studies. Quality appraisal and risk of bias assessment were conducted. Results Fifteen studies were included with three main themes and six sub‐themes: (a) programme impact (impact on ward‐level and senior nurses and impact on nursing students and educators); (b) programme characteristics (characteristics leading to positive outcomes and characteristics leading to negative outcomes); and (c) programme implementation (implementation barriers and implementation facilitators). Compassionate care education programmes helped enhance nurses' ability to engage in reflective practice, deal with clinical challenges, and gain confidence. The importance of nurturing compassionate care delivery in nursing education was highlighted in the literature. Various nursing‐level, patient‐level, and organizational barriers to compassionate care delivery were identified. Conclusion The impact of compassionate care educational programmes on nurses was predominantly positive. Further evaluation of the long‐term impact of these programmes on nurses, patients, and organizations is warranted. Impact Optimal delivery of compassionate care can be achieved by building organizational infrastructures that support nurses from all levels to attend education programmes and lead on compassionate care delivery.

Objectives — To describe community pharmacists' experiences and contributions to the management of mild to moderate depression in primary care and to explore their interactions with patients and physicians. Method — Qualitative semi‐structured interview study with a purposive sample of 20 community pharmacists from a range of backgrounds in one area of England. Pharmacists were asked to describe their involvement in the management of depression from patients' self‐diagnosis and self‐treatment through to treatment with antidepressants. They were asked to cite examples of the questions that they were asked by patients about depression and its treatment, and about their practice in advising patients with first‐time and repeat prescriptions for antidepressants. Attitudes and practice relating to compliance and concordance with antidepressants were explored. Key findings — Pharmacists were asked a wide range of questions by patients about antidepressants and depression. Often these questions posed ethical dilemmas for the pharmacists by raising topics that crossed inter‐professional boundaries. Pharmacists generally saw their role as encouraging patients to take antidepressant treatment and they reported providing technical information, mainly when the first prescription was dispensed. Most pharmacists worked from a “compliance” model although this appeared to conflict sometimes with their own views about the appropriateness of antidepressant treatment. Pharmacists rarely entered into discussion with patients on their feelings about treatment or their intention to take it. Monitoring of compliance to antidepressants was largely seen as the province of the physician and pharmacists appeared to feel unable to undertake this role effectively. Nevertheless 17 of the pharmacists expressed a wish to extend their role in the management of depression. Conclusions — Pharmacists' accounts showed that patients have unmet needs in relation to the management of depression and treatment with antidepressants. Achieving concordance in the tripartite relationship between patient, GP and pharmacist poses considerable challenges. However, our findings suggest that pharmacists could play a larger role as first‐line advisers on depression and its treatment if the identified barriers can be overcome.