Kenyan Nurses in the UK Turn Frontline Experience into Research

Kenyan nurses and midwives working in the UK are increasingly turning their frontline experience into research, quality improvement and policy work, with Sally Njoki Nyinza of the Kenya Nurses and Midwives Association – UK (KENMA-UK) among those promoting the shift.

Nyinza has urged nurses to move beyond recording clinical observations in patient notes or sharing them informally and instead develop them into research papers, theses and quality improvement projects. Her presentations at international forums, including the 5 Nations Health Protection Conference, have shown how experiences from clinical practice can be developed into evidence to support changes in healthcare practice.

She argues that nurses regularly identify important changes in patients, challenges with treatment adherence and practical innovations in care. Recording, analysing and publishing these experiences can help ensure that useful knowledge is shared and applied more widely.

Through KENMA-UK, Nyinza has promoted professional development and academic achievement alongside the organisation's welfare activities. She encourages nurses to contribute to research and innovation, emphasising that evidence-based practice is not limited to universities or research institutions.

Nurses contribute to the evidence base whenever they introduce a new approach, assess its results and use the findings to improve patient care. Nyinza's focus is on ensuring that such knowledge is documented and made available so that effective practices can be evaluated, replicated and scaled.

The approach is consistent with the World Health Organization's emphasis on the role of nurses and midwives in strengthening health systems. The professions account for a significant proportion of the global health workforce and play important roles in disease detection, health promotion, treatment and rehabilitation. WHO's Global Strategic Directions for Nursing and Midwifery also calls for stronger nursing leadership and greater involvement of nurses in policy and decision-making.

For Kenyan nurses working in the UK, this creates opportunities to contribute to healthcare beyond their immediate clinical roles. Their research and professional networks can support the exchange of knowledge between the UK, Kenya and the wider international health community.

The work also illustrates how migration can facilitate the transfer of professional knowledge. Experiences gained in one healthcare system can inform research, practice and policy discussions in another, particularly when they are documented and shared through professional networks.

Through her work with KENMA-UK, Nyinza is promoting a role for Kenyan nurses in the UK that includes research, knowledge development and professional leadership.