Research Priorities in Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nursing

2024 – 2028

The mission of AWHONN is to empower and support nurses caring for women, newborns and their families through research, education and advocacy. To achieve this mission, AWHONN supports and conducts research that spans and integrates the behavioral and biological sciences, and that supports the scientific basis for clinical practice. Since 1993, AWHONN has awarded more than $760,000 in research grants aimed at promoting the health of women, newborns, and families. AWHONN is committed to incorporating research and evidence‐based practice (EBP) as a foundation for women’s health, obstetric and neonatal nursing to provide quality patient care.

AWHONN believes that:

  • Research builds the scientific foundation for clinical practice.
  • Evidence‐based practice integrates the best available evidence to guide nursing care and improve patient outcomes.
  • Quality improvement, the systematic, continuous, contextualized, and interdisciplinary effort to improve health services, is critical to advancing the quality of care and ultimately improves patient outcomes.

The following AWHONN Research Priorities for 2024-2028 serve as a pathway for the advancement of women’s health, obstetric and neonatal nursing care through research and translation to evidence‐based practices that improve patient care. The ultimate goal of these priorities is to promote and improve the health and quality of life of women, newborns, and families.

Build the science of neonatal, obstetrical, reproductive, and women’s health care, through the discovery and translation of evidence-based strategies that promote respectful person-centered care and addresses health inequities as a way of promoting maternal and neonatal outcomes.

Priority I addresses practices that relate to areas of greatest need for women, newborns, and families, and for which AWHONN-supported research can have the largest impact. The examples provided are not meant to be an inclusive list.

  • Addressing psychosocial issues that affect the health of women, newborns, and families
  • Supporting efforts to reduce maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality, particularly in Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC), LGBTQIA+, patients with mental health or substance use disorders, domes c violence, and/or rural populations
  • Addressing the impact of social determinants of health in equitable health care and health outcomes
  • Promoting optimal neonatal adaptation
  • Promoting optimal sexual and reproductive health
  • Addressing Trauma-Informed Care, such as intimate partner violence (IPV), sexual assault,
    human trafficking, current or prior birth trauma in pregnancy and delivery
  • Any complications that result in increased maternal neonatal mortality and morbidity such as infectious diseases, sepsis, hemorrhage, Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)
  • Implementing a multidisciplinary approach to team communication creating a safe, just culture to include shared decision-making with patients and families

Evaluate the impact of educational materials, programs, and resources on patient and/or nursing outcomes through collaborative research, translational research, and implementation science.

Priority III addresses the impact of educational resources on patient or nursing outcomes. Examples of educational resources include, but are not limited to:

  • Evidence-Based Guideline implementation projects
  • Quality Improvement projects
  • Staffing Standards Implementation projects
  • AWHONN Programs and Resources (i.e., FHM, NOEP, POEP, EBG’s, etc.)
  • Local, State, or other Professional Products and Resources
  • Technological and Cu ng-Edge Advancements

Maintain a strong commitment to interdisciplinary and collaborative research training of current and next genera on nurse clinicians, educators, leaders, and scientists to address existing and impending health care challenges facing women, newborns, and families.

Priority II addresses activities that provide support for the professional development of healthcare professionals that includes, but is not limited to:

  • Participation in Evidence-based Practice Scholars and Training Programs
  • Support for Emerging Leaders Programs
  • Research mentoring
  • Promotion of no-cost continuing educational opportunities specific to research and EBP methodology.
  • Implementing Perinatal Quality Collaborative projects
  • Technology implementation or enhancement projects
  • Innovative education delivery projects, including simulation.
  • Participating in interdisciplinary education to include ICU, ER, Urgent Care, Primary Care, and Neonatal/Pediatrics
  • Collaborative research projects with interdisciplinary professional organizations with shared authorship
  • The importance of representation of nurses and the nursing practice in research and scientific publications
  • Community/Hospital research partnership to improve perinatal outcomes
  • Collaboration with academic institutions to further develop institutional research training for student nurses

Promote dissemination, translation, and implementation of science.
Priority IV addresses dissemination of scholarship through varied mediums including, but not limited to:

  • AWHONN scholarly publications (JOGNN, Nursing for Women’s Health)
  • AWHONN website
  • National, regional, and section conferences
  • Newsleters (e.g., AWHONN Express)
  • Social media (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twiter)
  • Podcasts and webinars
  • Collaborative partnerships
  •  Stakeholder engagement
  • Academic institutions’ publications
  • Other scholarly publications
  • Nursing advocacy through public policy
  • Patient education resources
  • Development of institution policy, procedures, and guidelines
Research Advisory Panel

Since 2003, AWHONN has created advisory panels to serve as “think tanks” in a consultant-client model to the Board of Directors. The Research Advisory Panel (RAP) members are appointed by the President of AWHONN through the Executive Office every year.

Learn more about our Research Advisory Panel. 

Research Awards

AWHONN’s commitment to nursing research and scholarship is reflected in our 31-year history of funding nursing research and promoting evidence-based nursing care. Our program is designed primarily for researchers whose efforts are on the beginning stages of a program of research.  Awards are granted to researchers whose proposals investigate variables relevant to AWHONN’s 2024-2028 Research Priorities.  Studies that are clinically focused and outcomes-based are a priority. Projects that focus on the nurse’s role in delivering cost-effective care in these subspecialties are encouraged and will also be considered.

Learn more about our grants and how to apply.