Title : Evidence based Practice: A training course for nurses
Abstract:
Evidence-based practice (EBP) should integrate individual clinical expertise with the best available clinical evidence from systematic research. Nursing research requires information literacy and knowledge for searching, evaluating and utilizing research evidence to provide best care for patients. Major barriers to Italian nursing research include time constraints, lack of administrative support, limited access to resources, and lack of knowledge.
To promote EBP in our Institute, our proposal is to plan a training course that provides nurses with the necessary information literacy skills to search the best evidence efficiently.
Four modules will cover the following topics:
1) Cultivating a spirit of inquiry with EBP culture/environment, EBP basics;
2) Formulating critical questions using PICOT format (Population; Intervention or area of interest; Comparison intervention or group; Outcome; Time);
3) Searching for external evidence to answer focused questions, bibliographic search strategies;
4) Critical appraisal of the evidence to determine their strength and applicability to operational practice.
Since scientific knowledge improves clinical care, we expect benefits in terms of quality, efficacy, cost-effectiveness, and patient centrality. Finally, this training course should represent the first step of a more ambitious project: preparing clinical nurses with expertise in EBP and creating professional co-development groups.