Introduction
The evidence-based practice (EBP) is the basis of modern healthcare and care delivery. The framework implies reviewing and analyzing the latest research findings to improve treatment outcomes and patient satisfaction. However, despite EBP’s critical importance and favorable nature, nurses may face challenges when implementing its core principles in practice. The challenges of shifting to EBP might vary across health units, depending on their environments and approaches to organizing work. Thus, an enhanced understanding of these barriers is essential for reconsidering the current methods and successfully replacing them with more advanced alternatives with proven favorable effects.
Barriers to Evidence-Based Practice
From my own experience, I can outline several barriers specific to EBP. The lack of time is the first and most significant obstacle, a problem peculiar to my medical-surgical unit and to other facilities across the state (Paci et al., 2021). It prevents nurses from adopting new practices and limits their capacity to do so. Second, education, or the lack of knowledge, is another crucial aspect. Many workers were educated several decades ago when EBP was not considered a practical approach to delivering care (Alqahtani et al., 2022).
As a result, there is a lack of understanding of how the process should be organized. Furthermore, I should admit the lack of authority to initiate the change process, which is typical for other healthcare units (Pitsillidou et al., 2021). Finally, resistance to change and fear of new methods reduce nurses’ motivation to engage in new processes (Crawford et al., 2022). These factors critically affect the implementation success of EBP in real-world settings. In such a way, overcoming these barriers is critical to practice.
Overcoming the Barriers
The first possible way is to create plans with the outlined goals, timeline, and schedule. It would help to address the lack of time and provide nurses with the chance to engage in EBP integration. Second, it is critical to continue cultivating knowledge about the framework through training and education. The third way involves empowering nurses with greater authority and voice to advocate for change and insist on adopting new practices to achieve better results. Finally, the fourth way is increasing EBP’s awareness and its benefits. It would reduce resistance to change and nurses’ readiness to participate actively.
Finally, EBP requires the use of an effective model to ensure that knowledge acquisition and integration are organized correctly. For my institution, the Practice Guidelines Development Cycle can serve as an appropriate framework for achieving better outcomes. It consists of eight essential steps:
- Select a problem
- Generate recommendations
- Ratify them
- Formulate practice guidelines
- Review them independently
- Negotiate new practice policies
- Adopt the guidelines
- Plan the future review (Dusin et al., 2023)
The model outlines all stages needed for the successful use of EBP practice in real settings. Additionally, it is both simple and effective, allowing all clinicians to be involved and play an important role in the design of new policies.
Conclusion
Altogether, EBP is the core of modern healthcare. It ensures better outcomes and promotes the use of innovative approaches in practice. However, numerous barriers hinder its integration, including limited time, insufficient knowledge, lack of authority, and resistance to change. Overcoming these barriers is critical and should include establishing clear plans, providing education, involving nurses, and creating a clear vision of the need for change. Using various modes, such as the Practice Guidelines Development Cycle, EBP can be applied in the chosen unit to generate better results.
References
Alqahtani, J. M., Carsula, R. P., Alharbi, H. A., Alyousef, S. M., Baker, O. G., & Tumala, R. B. (2022). Barriers to implementing evidence-based practice among primary healthcare nurses in Saudi Arabia: A cross-sectional study. Nursing reports, 12(2), 313–323.
Crawford, C., Rondinelli, J., Zuniga, S., Valdez, R., Tze-Polo, L., & Titler, M. (2022). Barriers and facilitators influencing EBP readiness: Building organizational and nurse capacity. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, 20(1), 27–36.
Dusin, J., Melanson, A., & Mische-Lawson, L. (2023). Evidence-based practice models and frameworks in the healthcare setting: a scoping review. BMJ Open, 13(5), e071188.
Paci, M., Faedda, G., Ugolini, A., & Pellicciari, L. (2021). Barriers to evidence-based practice implementation in physiotherapy: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal for Quality in Healthcare, 33(2), 1–13.
Pitsillidou, M., Roupa, Z., Farmakas, A., & Noula, M. (2021). Factors affecting the application and implementation of evidence-based practice in nursing. Acta Informatica Medica, 29(4), 281–287.