Evidence-based practice is a systematic process for using to use research findings to improve practice. When clinicians make health care decisions for a population or group of patients using research evidence, this definition can be expanded to evidence-based health care. In today's health care environment, all clinicians must clearly understand and interpret the pertinent evidence before providing care. Clinicians must ask the difficult questions related to the risks and benefits associated with costly interventions or treatments. Every procedure and step related to the procedure must be carefully considered for their contribution to health outcomes.
Perioperative nurses are well positioned to lead efforts in evidence-based practice.
Nurses in surgical settings collaborate with all health care team members and have many opportunities to identify potential clinical problems and issues and question customary practices. Nurses can begin the process of using evidence to guide practice by simply asking the following questions. Asking and answering these questions can help nurses find solutions for troubling clinical questions as well as improve existing practice that may appear to be within acceptable parameters. Many examples in the nursing and health care literature demonstrate how the status quo is potentially injurious to patients and expensive to the health care system. For example, a traditional nursing action that is too commonly performed is dry shaving with a safety razor.