Evidence Based Practice in Enhancement of Quality of Patient Care

There is a persistent call for the delivery of nursing care that combines best evidence, critical thinking and new technology in order to improve the quality of care. Studies have demonstrated that nursing practitioners offer health care based on the knowledge they learned in nursing schools, and less often do they base their practice on knowledge from journal articles and reports that are considered up to date. Considering that the average nurse may be above 40 years in age, this shows that most nursing practitioners may be applying knowledge that is outdated, meaning that quality patient care and desirable health outcomes cannot be achieved (Kania-Lachance et al. 53). The use of evidence based practice enables nurses to deliver high quality patient care established on research and knowledge instead of the old ways, which are based on traditions, myths and outdated literature. Evidence based practice, thus, becomes a significant mechanism through which care that is current and that is based on the latest research evidence is applied (Mulhall 5).

Evidence Based Practice and Improvement of Patient Outcomes

The major role of nurse practitioners is to help their patients achieve improved health outcomes. In contrast to the early practice that was geared towards reduction of morbidity and mortality, current nursing practice extends to other issues such as health care costs, clinical symptoms, functional ability, and quality of life of the patient. The current care, based on evidence based practice critically evaluates nursing practices and outcomes to generate knowledge that is essential in enhancing the quality of care (Kania-Lachance et al. 48). Studies have shown that patients who are provided with evidence based nursing care experience better health outcomes and increased levels of satisfaction as compared to those who receive care based on traditional practice. Evidence based nursing practice ensures that patients and their families are provided with the best and up-to-date care possible since nurses are empowered to tackle healthcare issues using an evaluative and qualitative approach from the patient’s perspective. Evidence based nursing practice depends on researched information, patient reports and nursing practitioner experiences in the collection of information that is employed in the provision of care. This helps in the identification of the kind of treatments that are effective on an individual patient and those that are not; hence it ensures that patients receive care that is individualized and most appropriate. Most studies have indicated that the use of best available research knowledge is associated with a lot of benefits than when nurses employ care practices whose mode of action and outcomes has not been established or are poorly understood (Emanuel et al. 22). A majority of patients entrust nurses with their lives, with the belief that the nursing practitioners will make decisions that would positively impact their health. Evidence based nursing, therefore, provides a mechanism through which nurses regularly base their decisions on the care they deliver to their patients. These decisions have the potential to influence the health outcomes of the patients positively or negatively. It has been shown that patients would experience improved outcomes if the care provided to them is engrained on researched and proven practices (Kitson 460).

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