Evidence-Based Practice Step by Step

The American Journal of Nursing has been publishing this series of articles on evidence-based practice periodically for over a year now. To date there are a total of 8 articles in this collection from the Arizona State University College of Nursing and Health Innovation's Center for the Advancement of Evidence-Based Practice.

"Evidence-based practice (EBP) is a problem-solving approach to the delivery of health care that integrates the best evidence from studies and patient care data with clinician expertise and patient preferences and values. When delivered in a context of caring and in a supportive organizational culture, the highest quality of care and best patient outcomes can be achieved."

This series is designed and presented with the intent of developing the knowledge and skills needed for nurses to implement EBP consistently, one step at a time. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has a stated goal that by 2020, 90% of all health care decisions in the United States will be evidence-based. In order to accomplish this goal, nurses will need to continually improve and consistently apply their skills in this area.