Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)
According to Mississippi College, evidence-based practice is a patient-centered approach founded on independent scientific research, clinical expertise, and patient experiences (2017, para. 2). It is regarded as instrumental in improving the quality of healthcare and patient outcomes. Evidence-based practice includes researching in nursing or healthcare to generate new knowledge and the application of best evidence to form the basis of nursing practice (Chien, 2019). Most importantly, it integrates translating the best existing evidence effectively into practice through practical innovation for effective implementation. Rita Pickler (2018) postulated that “nursing science needs to encompass all research methods, from discovery to translation, from bench to bedside, from mechanistic to holistic.”
Overcoming Barriers to EBP
Strategies must be formally implemented and evaluated to assess their impacts on influencing positive knowledge, beliefs, and attitudes on EBP. Redesigning nursing programs to teach and value evidence-based practice foundations is imperative in developing a culture upholding EBP as part of the norm and overcoming barriers (Leach, Canaway & Hunter, 2018). Also, encouraging participation in research platforms, especially online research, can facilitate reviewing of research studies for relevance, thus promoting EBP. A step-by-step approach can be applied to overcome such barriers, including identifying barriers to evidence-based practice, strengthening culture and beliefs towards using evidence-based practice, educating stakeholders, and using case scenarios of care built on evidence.
An Example of a Compelling clinical question that stimulates my interest takes a PICOT format: Can the implementation of a post-discharge heart failure transition protocol for cardiology providers in healthcare facilities improve compliance with the post-discharge seven-day follow-up appointment?
References
Chien, L. Y. (2019). Evidence-Based Practice and Nursing Research. The Journal of Nursing Research, 27(4), e29.
Leach, M. J., Canaway, R., & Hunter, J. (2018). Evidence-based practice in traditional & complementary medicine: an agenda for policy, practice, education, and research. Complementary therapies in clinical practice, 31, 38-46.
Mississippi College. (2017). Role of Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing: MC Online. Retrieved from https://online.mc.edu/articles/nursing/role-of-evidence-based-practice-in-nursing.aspx
Pickler, R. H. (2018). Honoring the past, pursuing the future.