Establishing an Australian Nurse Practitioner Research Agenda: A National Consensus Study

Aim: To establish research priorities for Australian Nurse Practitioners and develop a robust research agenda. Design: A descriptive, exploratory approach was used and conducted in two stages. Methods: Data were collected over two stages. Data for Stage 1 were collected from 14 December 2023 to 16 February 2024. For the Delphi rounds (Stage 2), data were collected from 11 March to 24 March 2024 for Delphi Round 1 and from 12 June to 26 June 2024 for Delphi Round 2. An exploratory survey was used in Stage 1 to identify clinical challenges and research themes perceived as important for Australian Nurse Practitioners. In Stage 2, a two-phased modified Delphi survey was conducted to prioritise the research themes identified in Stage 1. Results: A total of 315 participants responded to the exploratory survey, with a majority being female (77%), aged between 30 and 75 years. Participants were primarily employed in the public healthcare sector (60%), the private sector (23%), while 17% practised across both sectors. A total of 1335 challenges facing Australian Nurse Practitioners were identified. Sixty-nine participants completed the first Delphi round, and 33 the second, giving response rates of 21% (69/315) and 48% (33/69), respectively. The first Delphi round yielded 11 research themes. Seven of these yielded Content Validity Indices of < 0.90. Four research priority areas remained and were ranked in order of importance. Conclusion: The identified Australian Nurse Practitioner research priorities will play a pivotal role in shaping policies, fostering the efficient integration of Nurse Practitioners into the healthcare system and advancing research capacity. Impact: Nurse Practitioners are established providers of high-quality care internationally; however, they face persistent integration challenges in Australia. This study delivers a nationally relevant, consensus-based research agenda that identifies key priorities across clinical, educational and leadership domains. Patient or Public Contribution: No patient or public contribution.