Establishing and Spreading Evidence-Based Nursing Cultures: Collaborating Across Borders

Bajnok, Irmajean

Saturday, 29 October 2011

Katharine Kranz Lewis, PhD, MPH, MSN, RN
Department of Nursing, University of Hartford, West Hartford, CT
Irmajean Bajnok, RN, MSN, PhD
International Affairs and Best Practice Guidelines Programs, Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario, Toronto, ON, Canada
Heather McConnell, RN, BScN, MA (Ed)
International Affairs and Best Practice Guidelines Programs, Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario (RNAO), Toronto, ON, Canada

Learning Objective 1: Describe the elements of an innovative collaboration that supports the creation and spread of an evidence-based nursing culture from academia to practice.

Learning Objective 2: Discuss strategies and approaches to integrating evidence-based guidelines throughout the nursing curriculum

The Best Practice Spotlight Organization (BPSO) initiative, led by a professional nursing association in Canada, has resulted in significant uptake and utilization of best practice guidelines. This strategic initiative utilized in collaboration with service and academic partners has served to trigger the development of evidence-based nursing cultures, engage students in linking evidence to practice, improve patient care and enrich the professional practice of nurses and other health care providers. As a key element of this initiative, the BPSOs are required to implement best practice guidelines in their workplace setting, in this case an academic educational program, and evaluate the impact of the use of best practice guidelines.

Recently, a university school of nursing in Connecticut joined this network of over 50 service and academic organizations, committed to enhancing nursing practice, as the first International BPSO candidate. The school of nursing in Connecticut offers both a baccalaureate of nursing for RNs, as well as a Master of Science in Nursing (education, management, public health). Their student population is unique, as all students are professional adult learners, who are RNs practicing in a range of roles across the state and beyond. This provides strategic opportunities for spread of evidence-based practices, as the students take a leadership role in implementing and evaluating best practice guidelines in their workplaces.

This presentation will describe the structure of the BPSO initiative, the nature of the collaboration established between the professional association in Ontario, Canada and the academic nursing program in Connecticut; and, the innovative approaches used to integrate evidence-based practices into both a baccalaureate and masters nursing curriculum.

See more of: Poster Session I
See more of: Oral Paper & Poster: Evidence-Based Practice Contest