Paper
Sunday, November 4, 2007

136
This presentation is part of : Strategies for Workplace Excellence
Evidence-Based Practice & Nursing Research in the Community Hospital: Building An Infrastructure for Excellence
Kathleen M. White, PhD, RN, CNAA, CMAC, School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA, Kathleen Hartman Sabatier, MS, RN, Nursing Administration, Franklin Square Hospital Center, Baltimore, MD, USA, Linda C. Pugh, PhD, RNC, FAAN, Department of Nursing, York College of Pennsylvania, York, PA, USA, Joan Insalaco Warren, PhD, RN, BC, Director, Professional Practice and Research, Franklin Square Hospital Center, Baltimore, MD, USA, and Sheree Seben, MSN, RN, Coronary Care Unit, York Hospital, York, PA, USA.
Learning Objective #1: Describe the unique challenges of implementing evidence-based practice in community hospital settings
Learning Objective #2: Describe successful strategies used by three community hospitals to implement evidence based practice
Evidence Based Practice & Nursing Research in the Community Hospital:  Building an Infrastructure for Excellence

Purpose: Evidence-based practice and nursing research are thought to take place in university schools of nursing and large academic medical centers. And yet, many community hospitals are building infrastructures to provide the resources to make these activities possible. The purpose of this paper is to describe the process to promote the use of evidence-based practice in community hospital settings. Three hospitals of different sizes in different geographic areas (two in Maryland; one in Pennsylvania) will be described.

Theoretical Framework: Either the Johns Hopkins Nursing Model or Iowa Model for Evidence-based Practice have been adopted by three community hospitals in different geographic locations.

Methods (Design, Sample, Setting, Measures, Analysis): Building an infrastructure for EBP and nursing research has been approached differently by three hospital systems. These hospitals serve the community and range in bed capacity (480; 277; 343). Methods to encourage the use of "best practices" have included: periodic lectures, mentored projects, journal clubs; facilitation with the IRB process; inclusion of EBP in procedures and policies; competencies for clinical nurses at all levels; and resources to support these activities.

Results: Each hospital has demonstrated increased EBP project involvement.  Nursing researchers have been hired full or part time to support these activities. EBP and research have been disseminated by nurses at all three hospitals.

Conclusions and Implications: EBP adds to the culture of critical thinking & ongoing learning for nurse clinicians. Three hospitals are growing an environment where evidence supports clinical and administrative decisions, and building a community of scholarship.

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