Describe the steps of the evidence-based research process and the importance of using them. In the
initial stages of an EBP project, where do nurses in your specialty go to locate sources of information
that help them to determine whether or not a practice problem is appropriate for an evidence-based
practice change proposal. Include two specific sources on information in your discussion.
Evidence-based practice (EBP) is a problem-solving approach that involves using the best available
evidence to answer clinical questions. It involves a systematic approach of identifying the most relevant
evidence to implement a change to standard practice to improve patient outcomes or health care
processes (Melynyk & Fineholt-Overholt, 2011). Such research involves:
• Having a sense of inquiry;
• Asking a clinical question that needs addressing in PICOT format – (P) patient or population,
(I) intervention or area of interest, (C) comparison group, (O) outcome, and (T) time;
• the search for information and critical appraisal of that information as it relates to the
clinical question;
• critical appraisal of research, is this study valid and are the results helpful to patients;
• integration of the question’s basic concepts/components with existing clinical expertise;
• evaluate outcomes based on the evidence, understanding the projected impacts any change
can have on patients; and
• disseminate the results, review and integration of the results of more than one study into
the critical appraisal, so that the reliability and generalizability of the studies’ results are
stronger than any one study can be (Melnyk, Fineout-Overholt, Stillwell, and Williamson,
2010).
Nurses in the OR could use access they may have, as an alumnus, to the college library where they
obtained their degree. For myself, that would be GCU. Two GCU library databases I found that will be
helpful for my EBP proposal research are the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) EBP Database and CINAHL
Complete. JBI EBP Database provides access to over 3000 pieces from Evidence-Based Recommended
Practices to Systematic Review Protocols (Grand Canyon University, n.d.). The CINAHL Complete
database is the world’s largest source of full text nursing and allied health journals that is used by
nursing researchers and students (CINAHL, 2019). Also available is the ECRI Institute Guidelines Trust
that has taken the place of the Guidelines Clearinghouse. The ECRI Trust is available to the public that
provides objective, evidence-based clinical practice guideline content. Its purpose is to provide
healthcare providers with up-to-date clinical practices to advance safe and effective patient care. This
centralized repository includes evidence-based guidance developed by nationally and internationally
recognized medical organizations and medical specialty societies (Grand Canyon University, n.d.).
Information retrieved from databases are evaluated for accuracy and authority unlike Google Scholar or
general Internet searches which can return inaccurate information that is not relevant to my research.
By utilizing scholarly databases I can ensure that I am getting the most up to date and accurate
information for my EBP proposal.