Question

Week 3 Case Study, Information Literacy: A Road to Evidence-Based Practice

Nursing student Melissa is working on her patient care plan for this week’s clinical experience. Melissa remembers being told in class that when considering patient outcomes, the nurse must consider evidence-based practices to serve as the basis of nursing care and that the nurse’s level of education and practice will reflect in different interventions.

What process will Melissa use as the standard to investigate evidence-based care to include in her patient’s care plan?

What examples can Melissa provide to demonstrate how BSN, MSN, and Doctorate prepared nurses utilize evidence-based practice interventions differently?

Answer 1

Answer: Melissa should use the standard to investigate evidence-based care to include in her patient’s care plan by researching and evidence-based practice to take care of the patient. Evidence-based practice (EBP) involves complex and conscientious decision-making which is based not only on the available evidence but also on patient characteristics, situations, and preferences. It recognizes that care is individualized and ever changing and involves uncertainties and probabilities. It is important because it aims to provide the most effective care that is available, with the aim of improving patient outcomes.

Nurses have to get rid of inconsistent, irrelevant and illogical thinking as they think about patient care. Nurses need to use language that will clearly communicate a lot of information that is key to good nursing care. It is important to note that nurses are never focused in irrelevant or trivial information.

An example of an evidence-based project might include investigating the use of pharmacological venous thromboembolism (VTE) prophylaxis for patients who underwent a craniotomy and are recovering in the neuro ICU.