Nurses are responsible for patients’ health, safety, and lives, and their practice must be based on credible knowledge. Moreover, these employees are constantly working to improve the quality and efficiency of the health services provided. To achieve their goals, nurses conduct research, look for evidence of the effectiveness of specific actions, and adapt and test their assumptions. Depending on the features of some activities, one can distinguish evidence-based practice (EBP) and research-based practice.
Every day during the performance of their duties, nurses face the need to make decisions affecting patients and solve problems. Such responsibilities require applying research-based knowledge, that is, research-based practice. Within research-based activities, employees turn to knowledge proven by studies and apply them to improve patient outcomes (McKinney et al., 2019). EBP, in turn, involves the simultaneous use of the best evidence from research, the application of specialist experience, and the adaptation of actions to patient preferences (Camargo et al., 2018). Therefore, research-based knowledge combined with the healthcare institution’s expertise and the patient’s values becomes EBP (McKinney et al., 2019). One may consider research-based practice as an essential step toward the EBP. Both approaches aim to improve regular practice and improve the quality of health care services.
Thus, seeking to improve daily practice, solve problems, and make decisions, nurses can turn to the knowledge generated by the research. By introducing this knowledge into their activities, nurses follow the research-based practice. Combining the best evidence from the studies with the own expertise of the employee and the patients’ interests and values, in turn, form the basis for the EBP. By turning to research and finding the best evidence, nurses improve the quality of their work and patient outcomes.
References
Camargo, F. C., Iwamoto, H. H., GalvĂŁo, C. M., Pereira, G. D. A., Andrade, R. B., & Masso, G. C. (2018). Competences and barriers for the evidence-based practice in nursing: An integrative review. Revista Brasileira de Enfermagem, 71(4), 2030-2038.
McKinney, I., DelloStritto, R. A., & Branham, S. (2019). Nurses’ use of evidence-based practice at point of care: A literature review. Critical Care Nursing Quarterly, 42(3), 256-264.