Evidence-Based Practice Increases Job Satisfaction Among Nurses

Incorporating clinical evidence into patient care results in more positive outcomes not only for patients, but also for nurses. However, implementing evidence-based practice on a unit can be a challenge.

“We believe that the key to creating any cultural change, particularly one of evidence-based practice is you’ve got to be talking about it,” Renee Twibell said. “Cultures are changed one conversation at a time.”

During Tuesday’s session “Chasing a Dream: Integrating Evidence-based Practice on Your Unit,” Twibell, Brandy Renz and Debra Siela of Ball State University and Ball Memorial Hospital explained how an evidence-based practice operates and how to overcome obstacles.

Upon hearing the term “evidence-based practice,” many nurses respond with fear or ambivalence. Most nurses are not sure what the term means or where to start when incorporating new protocols into their work.

Unfortunately, there is no ‘best way’ to implement evidence-based practice and overcome fears and misconceptions, Renz said. However, she and her colleagues offered tips based on their experiences.

Understanding Evidence-based Practice

Essentially, evidence-based practice is the process of basing clinical decisions either on investigations conducted at other institutions or original research generated in-house.

Often these complaints among members of hospital units shared over lunch or in break rooms are turned into questions, which are answered by conducting research in journals and online databases. Renz said that nurses should be consistently asking, “What are we doing that’s not working?”

Units implementing evidence-based practice might run journal clubs and have mentors work with nurses not accustomed to asking and answering questions.

“Nurses on these units are empowered,” Renz said of evidence-based practices. Their suggestions regarding better patient care are taken seriously, resulting in increased job satisfaction as well as better patient outcomes and decreased costs.

Implementation

Integrating evidence-based practice into the work of a unit requires structure, an established process and resources, Twibell said. At her hospital, nurses found the best way to accomplish their goals was to establish a council to oversee nurse research.

A research council oversees the process of generation and implementation of evidence in nursing under the tenants of a charter. At Twibell’s hospital, 50% of the staff on the council are nurses and the rest are educators, medical librarians, nurse researchers and other individuals with related work.

“If you’re going to change a culture, you have to have the right people around the table,” Twibell said.

In addition to writing a charter, councils should establish a sense of member accountability in terms of attendance and participation.

At the first meeting of a research council, Twibell recommended conducting team-building exercises and ending with a small assignment for each of the nurses to take home. The most important thing is emphasizing the connection between research and bedside care.

“We made sure people understood how the work of the research council was connected not just to the bedside but to the organizational priorities,” Twibell said. “We want these nurses to have the big picture, to understand that the decisions that they make for their patient are also helping our organization reach its quality outcomes and its patient and nurse satisfaction outcomes.”

Additionally, Twibell recommended developing a mission statement, intranet resources and a newsletter to ensure that nurses continue to share ideas.