Discussion: EBP everyday practice as a nurse

Discussion: EBP everyday practice as a nurse

Evidence based practice is very much involved in our everyday practice as a nurse. Evidenced based practice is the most important element needed to give the best nursing care and ensure positive and improved patient outcomes. EBP involves several basic steps to determine if a policy and procedure will improve patient care and improve the quality of nursing care. EBP focuses on outcomes and scientific data collection. The steps are as follows. Ask a clinical question, search for evidence that best supports this theory, critically appraise the evidence, introduce the evidence to patient preferences and values along with clinical expertise, determine the outcome of the procedure or the changes that have been made based off new evidence, and finally study the EBP results. (Friberg, E and Creasia,F, 2016).

Nursing profession requires us as nurses to be in a field that is always evolving and growing with new information and new procedures and policies. We must be in the forefront as new EBP practices are formed and be involved in the critical thinking and analyzing step of the EBP. On a daily basis we practice and use policies that were formed based off evidence that was found to be in the favor of our patients. We should be continually studying and learning what is best for our patients by using the science and evidence behind EBP. (Friberg, E and Creasia,F, 2016).

A current policy and procedure that my hospital has just recently begun doing that was based on EBP is using a CHG bath for all patients with central lines or catheters. EBP showed that a CHG bath every day was associated with reduced risks of acquiring CLABSI, CAUTI,MRSA, and VRE for patients with central lines/ catheters. As we all know from working on the floor a very common risk for patients with central lines/catheters are hospital acquired infections. These lead to longer hospital stays and sometimes are fatal for our patients. Through trials and evidence based off patients in hospitals many studies and scientific data were calculated to determine if patients would benefit from a CHG bath. After these studies proved to improve patient care, our hospital adapted this policy and now our patients receive a CHG bath daily. ( Kim,H, Lee,W, Na,S, Roh,Y,Shin,C, Kim, J, 2016).

Kim,H.Y. , Lee,W.K., Na, S., Roh,Y., Shin,C.S., Kim,J. Journal of Critical Care. “Sepsis/Infection: The Effects of chlorhexidine gluconate bathing on health care-associated infections in intensive care units”. April 2016. Elsevier Inc.

Friberg, E., Creasia, J. (2016). Conceptual foundations: The bridge to professional nursing practice. (6th ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier.

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Discussion: As a nurse, how do you use EBP on a daily basis?
Discussion: As a nurse, how do you use EBP on a daily basis?

Evidence-based practice is very much a part of our day-to-day work as nurses. The most critical component required to provide the finest nursing care and ensure good and improved patient outcomes is evidence-based practice. EBP entails several fundamental processes to examine whether a policy or method would improve patient care and nursing care quality. EBP focuses on results and the collection of scientific data. The procedures are as follows. Ask a clinical question, look for evidence that best supports this hypothesis, critically evaluate the evidence, apply the evidence to patient preferences and values, as well as clinical expertise, and establish the outcome of the procedure or the changes that have occurred.