Continuity of care through evidence-based practice-thinking strategically.

摘要

Continuity is both an aim and a philosophy affecting the delivery of health care to individuals and families. Evidence-based practice (EBP) is also viewed as a philosophy that advocates delivery of care using "best" practices. Both are fundamental nursing care concepts intended to improve the quality of care and patient outcomes. On the surface, they seem as two distinct and separate notions. But are they?Nurses have focused on continuity as a care concept for nearly a century, tracing back to the rise of hospital care in the early 1900s (Samansky et al. 1984). Mary Strong Burns' (1921) pioneering study about hospital-to-home transition (n = 200) produced some of the first evidence on transitions and continuity.