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Tech Reports

Tech Report kmi-06-10 Abstract


Knowledge work in nursing and midwifery: an evaluation through computer mediated communication
Techreport ID: kmi-06-10
Date: 2006
Author(s): Fiona Brooks, Peter Scott
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Recent changes in policy and culture require health workers to incorporate ??knowledge work?? as a routine component of professional practice. Innovative computer-mediated communication technologies provide the opportunity to evaluate the nature of ??knowledge work?? within nursing and midwifery. This study embedded an online discussion system into an acute NHS Trust to support interaction within communities of practice. The complete record of online communications was analysed. Nurses were found to predominantly engage in information work with knowledge work restricted to senior-to-senior level exchanges. In contrast, midwives were observed to employ the technology to support knowledge work between all grades. The study indicates that technology can support knowledge work, including conveying tacit knowledge effectively.

Publication(s):

International Journal of Nursing Studies, Vol.43, 1, (83-97), Elsevier.
 
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Social Software is...


Social Software
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Interacting with other people not only forms the core of human social and psychological experience, but also lies at the centre of what makes the internet such a rich, powerful and exciting collection of knowledge media. We are especially interested in what happens when such interactions take place on a very large scale -- not only because we work regularly with tens of thousands of distance learners at the Open University, but also because it is evident that being part of a crowd in real life possesses a certain 'buzz' of its own, and poses a natural challenge. Different nuances emerge in different user contexts, so we choose to investigate the contexts of work, learning and play to better understand the trade-offs involved in designing effective large-scale social software for multiple purposes.