Nursing researchers from Ohio State University have developed a list of 24 evidence-based practice (EBP) ompetencies a combination of knowledge and skills-for registered and advanced-practice nurses (APNs) in real-world clinical settings. The authors recommend that health care institutions build these skills into employment expectations, evaluations and clinical ladder promotion systems as part of their efforts to implement and sustain evidence-based care. To arrive at the list of competencies, the researchers collected expert input from national leaders in EBP and surveyed 80 nurses who are EBP mentors in health care systems across the United States. Within the list, 13 items apply to registered nurses (RNs) and 11 are intended for APNs. The competencies for RNs range from questioning clinical practices for the purpose of improving quality of care, critically appraising published research and collecting and tracking outcomes data that can support the continued use of newly adopted practices. APNs should be expected to lead teams in applying evidence to initiate practice changes and put strategies into place to sustain a culture that fosters EBP. All competencies point toward nurses being actively involved in shifting care from how things have always been done to care, that is, research-based evidence and deemed the most effective.
展开▼
