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Challenges: the continued gap between research and professional practice
Applied Nursing Research 19 (2006) 1 www.elsevier.com/locate/apnr
Editorial
Challenges: the continued gap between research and professional practice Many of you may have seen the recent study reported in the American Journal of Nursing in September 2005 (Pravikoff, Tanner, & Pierce, 2005). In that study, the researchers addressed registered nurses’ awareness of the need for evidence-based practice and the barriers, both individual and institutional, in using research and other evidence in clinical practice. Alarmingly, of 752 clinical nurses who responded, 17% indicated that they never personally seek information from journal articles and 58% said that they never seek information from a research report. Of even greater concern was the fact that the primary individual barrier (other than time) to the use of research in practice cited by these nurses was the lack of value of research in practice (Pravikoff et al., 2005). Although there were other findings from that study that are of concern to the development of future professionals, these key findings about the gap between the publication of research and the application of research in professional practice are central to the mission of this journal. We have committed to reporting research that have immediate applicability and are reported in clinician-friendly terms. The Applied Nursing Research (ANR) has sought the input of clinician reviewers and developed special features to focus on research instruments that have direct relevance to clinical practice. Yet, we still see a large gap, one that needs to be filled if we are to advance the profession. Several new approaches can be identified to bridge this continuing gap. Evidence-based practice should be a focus for career advancement by nurse clinicians. This would
0897-1897/$ – see front matter D 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.apnr.2005.10.001
require the integration of key components of application of research in practice within the professional documentation provided in the clinical setting. Nurse administrators could make copies of the journal available on each of the clinical units. Journal clubs could begin and continue through the initiatives of nurse managers and senior executives. In addition, individual nurses could use poster boards to empower their colleagues in recognizing the latest developments published in nursing research or clinical journals. Although some of the responsibility falls on individual practitioners, much of the shared responsibility also belongs to nurse educators and administrators. We truly are all in this together, and each of us has to do more so that the collective result is greater. There are many solutions to this problem in the profession, but, first, we must recognize the issues, name them, and claim them as ones we can overcome. We at the ANR will continue to reach out to clinicians, educators, and researchers as well as to seek your advice and counsel in this quest for higher standards of professional practice. Joyce J. Fitzpatrick, PhD, RN, FAAN (Editor)
Reference Pravikoff, D. S., Tanner, A. B., Pierce, S. T. (2005). Readiness of U.S. nurses for evidence-based practice. American Journal of Nursing, 105(9), 40 – 51.
Editorial
Challenges: the continued gap between research and professional practice Many of you may have seen the recent study reported in the American Journal of Nursing in September 2005 (Pravikoff, Tanner, & Pierce, 2005). In that study, the researchers addressed registered nurses’ awareness of the need for evidence-based practice and the barriers, both individual and institutional, in using research and other evidence in clinical practice. Alarmingly, of 752 clinical nurses who responded, 17% indicated that they never personally seek information from journal articles and 58% said that they never seek information from a research report. Of even greater concern was the fact that the primary individual barrier (other than time) to the use of research in practice cited by these nurses was the lack of value of research in practice (Pravikoff et al., 2005). Although there were other findings from that study that are of concern to the development of future professionals, these key findings about the gap between the publication of research and the application of research in professional practice are central to the mission of this journal. We have committed to reporting research that have immediate applicability and are reported in clinician-friendly terms. The Applied Nursing Research (ANR) has sought the input of clinician reviewers and developed special features to focus on research instruments that have direct relevance to clinical practice. Yet, we still see a large gap, one that needs to be filled if we are to advance the profession. Several new approaches can be identified to bridge this continuing gap. Evidence-based practice should be a focus for career advancement by nurse clinicians. This would
0897-1897/$ – see front matter D 2006 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.apnr.2005.10.001
require the integration of key components of application of research in practice within the professional documentation provided in the clinical setting. Nurse administrators could make copies of the journal available on each of the clinical units. Journal clubs could begin and continue through the initiatives of nurse managers and senior executives. In addition, individual nurses could use poster boards to empower their colleagues in recognizing the latest developments published in nursing research or clinical journals. Although some of the responsibility falls on individual practitioners, much of the shared responsibility also belongs to nurse educators and administrators. We truly are all in this together, and each of us has to do more so that the collective result is greater. There are many solutions to this problem in the profession, but, first, we must recognize the issues, name them, and claim them as ones we can overcome. We at the ANR will continue to reach out to clinicians, educators, and researchers as well as to seek your advice and counsel in this quest for higher standards of professional practice. Joyce J. Fitzpatrick, PhD, RN, FAAN (Editor)
Reference Pravikoff, D. S., Tanner, A. B., Pierce, S. T. (2005). Readiness of U.S. nurses for evidence-based practice. American Journal of Nursing, 105(9), 40 – 51.