What are the roles of Evidence-based practice in nursing?
The United States is one of the many countries that spend billions of dollars in its healthcare system while trying to make it the best. Despite spending so much money on healthcare, the United States is ranked 37th globally in world health outcomes. According to research, it has been found out that nurse’s work for more than 12 hours in a day having multiple adverse working for long hours for patients and clinicians. In the United States if the Evidence-based recommendation could have been followed to the letter by the primary caregivers, then millions of dollars could be saved by the government. Therefore id caregivers, including nurses, make the right decisions then this will be helping the government to save millions of dollars. Following Evidence-based recommendation by nurses helps in coming up with better choices that help improve the quality of care given to patients by nurses.
With the advancement in technology healthcare facilities are trying their level best to ensure they deliver the best services to their patients. Some of the ways evidence-based practice has been achieved are through using the best technology to enable medical staffs make a better decision and training employees to ensure they have the best skills to deliver quality healthcare and make sound decisions. Healthcare facilities have a responsibility of ensuring their staffs provide the best healthcare services based on the available evidence.
Evidence-based practice does not only involves a health care profession in doing research and using their experience to make a better decision, but it also includes professional to use their training, skills and knowledge taking into account the values and situations of the patients and the practice context one is working in. Therefore when a professional is referred to as engaging in evidence-based practise, this means they are inconsiderate of all the four elements that allow them to make a better decision concerning a patient.
With the advancement in technology and more policies that have been put in place by healthcare authorities, healthcare facilities are always required to ensure they work as per the rules and regulation that have been put in place to ensure patients are given quality healthcare services. According to research, it has been found out that evidence-based practice improves healthcare safety and quality through an extensive body. The Triple Aim has now been expanded to the Quadruple Aim: the fourth goal being to enhance work-life and decrease burnout in clinicians (Bodenheimer & Sinsky, 2014). Through the meeting, healthcare professionals try to meet the triple aim in healthcare that can be defined as:
- Improving people’s population
- Improving the experience of patients after they visit a healthcare organization includes satisfaction and quality.
- Help to reduce healthcare per capita cost.
The article discussed the healthcare quality, cost reduction and patients’ outcome is improved by Evidence-based practice, and yet many challenges have to be overcome in the healthcare settings. Healthcare organization has a role to play by ensuring all clinical professionals in their facilities meet the Evidence-based practices competencies that have been newly established and creating an environment and culture that support Evidence-based practice.
Establishing these strategies within a healthcare organization is among the essential strategies that will help to change and transform the current state form of nursing practice to a better one that will deliver quality healthcare services to their patients. Many challenges are being experienced in the healthcare setting; healthcare organization has to find ways they can use to get their solutions; therefore the paper helps to explain how Evidence-based practise plays a significant role in improving patient outcomes, cost reduction and healthcare quality.
Evidence-based practice has been a significant factor that has improved patients outcome and healthcare quality by empowering medical staffs when it comes to a high level of job satisfaction. Evidence-based practice also helps systems in the healthcare facilities to achieve the quadruple aim. The Triple Aim has now been expanded to the Quadruple Aim: the fourth goal being to improve work-life and decrease burnout in clinicians (Bodenheimer & Sinsky, 2014). Despite the many benefits the Evidence-based practice has on the quality of healthcare, patients outcome in the united states and all over the world, many challenges are associated with it that has to be overcome, to improve patients care. Some of the barriers that have been experienced in Evidence based practice are:
- Nurses and other healthcare staffs lacking enough skills and knowledge in Evidence based practice.
- A misconception that Evidence based practice may take too much time
- Organizations policies and politics that is outdated
- Resistance from leaders, nurse managers, and colleges
- Healthcare systems not having enough Evidence based practice mentors
- Lack of environment or culture that supports Evidence based practice
- limited tools and resources
Inclusion of Evidence-based practice in healthcare facilities helps to provide scientific research to nurses that help them to make a well-founded and sound decision on patients’healthcare. The technology and policies in healthcare are advancing and changing with time; therefore, Evidence based practice will help nurses to be always updated on new medical protocols hence enabling them to deliver quality healthcare to patient and still avoid being on the wrong side of the law. Actions that nurses take concerning their patients are very vital in saving patients’ lives. Chances of patients to recovery can be increased by nurses searching for documented intervention that fits their patients’ profiles.
Evidence-based practice helps the nurse to have a better understanding of the risk and effectiveness that is involved in treatments and diagnostic test through evaluating research. Including patients in their healthcare plan is an essential step to quality healthcare; therefore, Evidence based practice is crucial in helping nurses to include patients in their care plans. Including patients’ in their care pal is an essential step in allowing patients to have a proactive role in the healthcare they receive because it will enable them to share their concerns, values and preference hence giving their opinions on how they want the whole process to be done. This will allow patients to have a proactive role in their healthcare since they can voice concerns, share their values and preferences and make suggestions on how they want to proceed (Eastern Illinois University, 2018).
A new set of competencies was established of Evidence based practice for practising APNs and RNs. The competencies that are developed are beneficial in ensuring nurses are competent and have skills and knowledge in what they are doing by qualified nurses in Evidence based care. The development of competencies helps to ensure nurses delivered safe nursing care, high quality as expected by the public. Since this earlier definition, EBP has been broadened to include a lifelong problem-solving approach to how healthcare is delivered that integrates the best Evidence from high-quality studies with a clinician’s expertise and also a patient’s preferences and values (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2015)
Reference
Bodenheimer, T., & Sinsky, C. (2014). From triple to quadruple aim: care of the patient requires care of the provider. The Annals of Family Medicine, 12(6), 573-576.
Melnyk, B. M., & Fineout-Overholt, E. (Eds.). (2015). Evidence-based practice in nursing & healthcare: A guide to best practice. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Eastern Illinois University (2018). Why Is Evidence-Based Practice In Nursing So Important? Retrieved from https://learnonline.eiu.edu/articles/rnbsn/evidence-based-practice-important.aspx