Evidence-based practice, evidence-based medicine, evidence-based nursing and evidence-informed decision-making began with Florence Nightingale in the 1850s during the Crimean War. She noted a connection between poor sanitary conditions in the hospital and rising death rates among wounded soldiers (Bite-Sized History of Mathematical Resources, n.d.). “It is Nightingale who developed the coxcomb, a visual display to demonstrate how military deaths could be prevented” (Morin, 2010, p. 2). Her subsequent efforts to sanitize hospitals to save soldiers led to dramatic drops in patient mortality.
Historical Overview
Much of the original work on evidence-based practice (EBP) focuses on EBP in medicine. Although the term “evidence-based medicine” (EBM) reportedly was first used in the 1980s, the practice gained wide recognition in 1992 when the Journal of the American Medical Association published an article by the evidence-based medicine …show more content…
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Relevance of evidence-informed decision-making to nursing practice
Patients depend on nurses to do the best on their behalf. As part of their professional accountability, nurses must continually examine the best way to deliver care. Read more
Types of evidence
According to the Canadian Nurses Association, a variety of sources are being used by nurses to facilitate their use of evidence. These sources include systematic reviews, research studies and abstraction journals that summarize valid, clinically useful published studies, and clinical practice guidelines. “Guidelines are based on the most rigorous research available, and when research is not available, they are grounded in expert opinion and consensus” (Canadian Nurses Association, 2010, p. 4). Read more
Barriers to nursing: Evidence-based practice/Evidence-informed