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Lesson 1 Evidence Based Practice©
Linda Millenbach RN, PhD
Nursing Research Alliance of the Capital District
LEARNING OBJECTIVE:
The learner will be able to describe evidence-based practice
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OVERVIEW
In health care both the patient and healthcare provider want the best care possible for the patient. Fortunately there is a recognized method for this to happen. It is evidence-based practice (EBP). EBP enables healthcare providers to provide the highest quality care in meeting the multiple needs of their patients and families.
EBP is a problem solving or decision-making approach to clinical practice that incorporates
- The most relevant research and evidence to answer the important question
- One’s own clinical expertise
- Assessment data from the patient
- Patient values, preferences and input.
EBP is a not a new idea. It was founded by Dr.Archie Cochrane, a British epidemiologist, in the 1970’s. Because of his work, the Cochrane Center was established in 1992. Its purpose is to assist in making well informed decisions about healthcare by developing, maintaining, updating reviews of healthcare interventions and ensuring that these are available to the public. The Cochrane Center can be accessed at http://www.cochrane.org/resources/brochure.htm
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EBP has five critical steps
1. Ask the question
You as the learner will need to identify the nursing practice problem that you would like to change or improve. Lesson 4 of this program will discuss how to identify a practice problem. In Lesson 5, the method of formulating a searchable question for the clinical problem is discussed.
2. Find the best and most relevant evidence
When using EBP the search is for best and most relevant evidence. The evidence can be found in systemic reviews and EBP clinical practice guidelines. Lesson 6 will help you learn about searching databases to find evidence to answer your question.
3. Complete a rapid appraisal of the evidence
Here you will need to determine what is useful and applicable to the problem you have identified. Lesson 7 will direct you on how to complete a critical appraisal of the evidence that you have found and provide you with key questions when doing your analysis.
4. Integrate the evidence
Now that you have the evidence to address your problem, you will need to integrate it into your own clinical expertise, the assessment data from the patient and the patient’s values, preferences and input. This is a key step in implementing the evidence based practice change. Lesson 9 will discuss how this can be accomplished.
5. Evaluate the effectiveness of the practice change
This is an essential step. You will need to determine whether the change based on the evidence resulted in the expected outcomes. Lesson 8 will address the best methods of evaluation.
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