EBP is important to delivering high-quality healthcare and giving patients the best outcomes at the lowest cost.
Not only does EBP improve healthcare for patients, but it also increases the nurse’s autonomy and fosters a feeling of empowerment.
Improving understanding and increasing the use of EBP in undergraduate and graduate nurses will lead to growth throughout the entire nursing profession. EBP can be a long process that begins with a nurse using clinical expertise to question current practices.
EBP combines the nurse’s experience, patient preference, and the most compelling evidence available to continuously improve healthcare and patient outcomes.
Using the PICOT format to refine the clinical question will enable the nurse to identify pertinent research and current evidence. Using the outlined EBP process will enable the nurse to complete the process and answer the clinical questions. There may be barriers to EBP at all levels. Increasing education on EBP in undergraduate nursing programs will help to produce nurses that are more comfortable with the process. Practicing nurses can improve their understanding of the EBP process by participating in workshops and completing CEU offerings related to EBP. Subscribing to nursing journals and discussing research literature is a great way to consider and develop clinical questions. Forming task forces and formal teams, using mentors, journal clubs, and EBP rounds are also good ways to instill the use of EBP into your organization. Forming an EBP team can help to facilitate the process and implement change. Team members should be passionate about EBP to build excitement within the organization and light a fire in the staff to drive change.
