Why are we reluctant to use research based practice

DDRN4me · Aug 8, 2005

Hi everyone. I am currently taking a MSN program with an emphasis on nursing education. I have a research question that I would like your views on.
"Why do you think we do not use more evidence bases practice in our work settings, do you have any suggestions on how we can improve this"
This is for a written report.
All comments are welcome. Thanks a bunch :imbar

I think we do try to use evidence based practice, but nursing is not only a science , but an art, so i think we tend to use the tried and true practices that are handed down from one generation of nurses to another...sometimes we are reluctant to change what already seems to work....JMHO!

i am currently "on the fence" about whether to focus on nursing education or become an NP....good luck!!

llg, PhD, RN · Aug 8, 2005

Other people on this board have asked the same question and I will give you the same answer as I have in the past. (though I also agree with the post above)

Many of us in leadership positions have studied enough of the nursing research to not trust it. Much of the research is of bad quality and/or conducted with small samples. We are therefore hesitant to trust it. Also, few nurses are sufficiently educated about research to be able to make good judgments about it -- both in terms of how to conduct it and in how to evaluate it and/or apply it.

I have a PhD in nursing (work in a hospital) and worked have worked in 2 university-based nursing research centers. So, I am not "averse to research" by any stretch of the imagination. I wish that our profession/discipline could do better. But we have a lot of work to do to get our collegues sufficiently prepared to conduct and use research extensively.

llg

Tweety, BSN, RN · Aug 8, 2005

We're supposed to be using an evidenced based practice where we work. We're not there head, but heading in the right direction.

But like llg says, there isn't good research out there that can be generalized to our setting. While there is a lot of research being done, there isn't a lot of replication done where you can trust to adapt a researched based intervention.

We've a long way to go.

TRichter · Aug 8, 2005

Thank you for your thoughts. I agree, we like to stick to what works and only change when forced to. Any thoughts on how to improve this?

I think we do try to use evidence based practice, but nursing is not only a science , but an art, so i think we tend to use the tried and true practices that are handed down from one generation of nurses to another...sometimes we are reluctant to change what already seems to work....JMHO!
i am currently "on the fence" about whether to focus on nursing education or become an NP....good luck!!

TRichter · Aug 8, 2005

Thank you for your reply. Where did you go to get your PhD? Do you have any thought on how to improve our use of evidence based practice?

Other people on this board have asked the same question and I will give you the same answer as I have in the past. (though I also agree with the post above)
Many of us in leadership positions have studied enough of the nursing research to not trust it. Much of the research is of bad quality and/or conducted with small samples. We are therefore hesitant to trust it. Also, few nurses are sufficiently educated about research to be able to make good judgments about it -- both in terms of how to conduct it and in how to evaluate it and/or apply it.
I have a PhD in nursing (work in a hospital) and worked have worked in 2 university-based nursing research centers. So, I am not "averse to research" by any stretch of the imagination. I wish that our profession/discipline could do better. But we have a lot of work to do to get our collegues sufficiently prepared to conduct and use research extensively.
llg

TRichter · Aug 8, 2005

We have changed some things at work due to research, such as using the alcohol based hand cleanser instead of soap and water if there in no fluid on hands, there are also some medical practices that have changed and according to the docs they say it is due to research. How would you suggest we increase our use of evidence based practice?

We're supposed to be using an evidenced based practice where we work. We're not there head, but heading in the right direction.
But like llg says, there isn't good research out there that can be generalized to our setting. While there is a lot of research being done, there isn't a lot of replication done where you can trust to adapt a researched based intervention.
We've a long way to go.

fergus51 · Aug 8, 2005

Speaking only from my personal experience, some nurses are just stuck in their ways. It would take an act of God to get some of the nurses I work with to update their knowledge and accept any rationale other than "We've always done it this way"....

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide · Aug 8, 2005

I agree with llg, there needs to be more emphasis on this in schools of nursing, from ADN all the way up. This is an area where I realize the limits of my education; as an ADN myself, I haven't heard much about 'evidence-based' practice, although I'm certainly smart enough to figure out what it means. All these terms that get thrown around in the higher echelons of our profession have very little meaning for the nurse in the trenches; we don't have time to bandy them about or ponder their significance. But it would be a good thing to be introduced to these concepts in school, so that they aren't foreign to us later on when we're out in the real world where we're supposed to apply them.