Evidence Based Practice Reflection

Karbowski Module 5 Discussion Board

In this post I will discuss how my understanding of evidence based practice (EBP) has evolved since I first became a nurse. Lastly, I will demonstrate how utilizing research has impacted my current role as a school based public health nurse.
Training
When I first became a nurse some 25 years ago EBP was not a concept that was emphasized by the nursing faculty. Certainly, research was factored into our course work and layered into the practicalities of nursing that were being taught. The internet and lap or handheld devices were not as ubiquitous as they are today. Cutting edge information was available but it required planning, time and execution skills to obtain. In today’s world it feels as if the knowledge is at our fingertips and just a click and a few milliseconds away. Mantzoukas (2008) describes an integration of research, clinical findings and the melding of one’s own knowledge and experiences to tailor your nursing care. This is an expanded view of EBP influencing individualized nursing practice and taking a macro view and bringing it down to a micro (individual) application.
Supporting Practice with EBP

Health services in Weston had been employing a policy based on individual nurse’s experience and a personal knowledge base of this pest for the past several years. No formalized policy had been employed across the system. People had generally agreed that the policy that was present was working fine. This, however, proved to not be true, each individual school was implementing their own understanding of what the best practices for this pest were. As I began to review and gather anecdotes from each nurse it became clear that we did not have a unified approach based on the most current