Paediatric nurses’ understanding and utilisation of evidence based practice

Abstract
In New Zealand evidence based practice is seen as fundamental to safe practice, professional accountability and important to ensuring best possible outcomes for patients and consumers of health care services. The Nursing Council of New Zealand states that nurses must provide care based on best available evidence and best practice. However, it is not clear how nurses understand research and evidence based practice and how it is recognized as part of their practice. The aim of this study was to explore the understanding of nurses working in a tertiary level paediatric health care facility, of research and attitudes, understanding and utilisation of evidence based practice. A descriptive self-report anonymous survey questionnaire was utilized and included quantitative and qualitative questions on attitudes, knowledge and barriers related to research and evidence based practice utilization. Six hundred paediatric nurses were invited to participate with a response rate of 188 (32%). Data were entered into SSPS for analysis. Descriptive statistics were used to report demographic data, response rates, and scores on the quantitative responses. Descriptive content analysis was applied to the qualitative responses. Cross tabulations (Kendall Tau-b correlations) were used to measure the significance and strength of relationships between variables. All assumptions for statistical testing were met. Findings show that nurses see research and evidence based practice as important for improving patient care and nurses felt they had a basic knowledge of research. However less than 40% of nurses felt confident to undertake research or the evidence based process steps. Barriers to undertaking research/evidence based practice included time, access to technology and data bases, and support from colleagues. Although nurse’s value evidence based practice, translation into practice remains challenging.

Ngā ariā matua
Ngā ariā matua I Aotearoa e whakaarotia ana ko te tino ritenga haumaru rawa, e pūmau ai te kawenga haepapa, e tino tika ai hoki te kī, tērā e pai ngā putanga mā ngā tūroro me ngā kiritaki o ngā ratonga tiaki hauora,  koia tēnei, kia whakawhirinaki ki ngā taunakitanga.  E mea ana te Kaunihera Tapuhi o Aotearoa me hora mahi tiaki ngā tapuhi i runga tonu i ngā tino taunakitanga me ngā ritenga mahi papai e wātea ana. Ahakoa tērā, kāore i te mārama he pēhea te mārama o ngā tapuhi ki ngā rangahau me ngā ritenga mahi i takea mai i te taunakitanga, he pēhea hoki e whakamanaia ai hei wāhi mō ā rātou mahi tapuhi. Te whāinga ia o tēnei rangahau he tūhura i te māramatanga o ngā tapuhi e mahi ana i tētahi whare tiaki hauora tamariki taumata tuatoru, ki ngā rangahau me ngā waiaro, ki te māramatanga me te whakamahinga hoki o ngā ritenga tiaki i takea mai i te taunakitanga pai.  I whakamahia he uiui ingoa-muna kiri-pūrongo, kei roto nei ētahi pātai rahinga, kounga hoki mō ngā waiaro, te mātauranga me ngā maioro o te whakamahi i ngā rangahau, ritenga mahi hoki i takea mai i te taunakitanga pai. E ono rau ngā tapuhi i pōwhiritia kia uru mai, ā, ko te pāpātanga whakautu, 188 (32%). I whakaurua ngā raraunga ki SSPS kia tātaritia. I whakamahia ngā tatauranga whakaahua hei tuku pūrongo mō ngā raraunga taupori, ngā pāpātanga whakautu, me ngā inenga mō ngā whakautu rahinga. I hoatu he tātaritanga whakaahua kai ki ngā whakautu kounga. I whakamahia he ripanga whakawhiti (ngā hāngaitanga Kendall Tau b) hei ine i te nui me te pakari o te whanaungatanga i waenga i ngā tāupetanga. I tutuki katoa ngā werohanga whakaaro mō te whakamātautau tatauranga. E ai ki ngā kitenga e tino whakaaro nui ana ngā tapuhi ki ngā rangahau me ngā ritenga mahi i takea mai i te taunakitanga hei wāhi nui o te whakapiki i te mahi tiaki tūroro, ā, i āhua mōhio rātou ki ngā ture taketake o te rangahau. Ahakoa tērā, iti iho i te 40 ōrau o ngā tapuhi i mea ka kaha rātou ki te kawe rangahau, i ngā hipanga i takea mai i te taunakitanga rānei. Ko ētahi o ngā maioro ki te kawe rangahau/ritenga mahi i takea mai ki te rangahau ko te wā tonu, ko te wātea mai o ngā hangarau me ngā pātengi raraunga, me te tautoko mai o ngā hoa mahi.  Ahakoa he mea nui ki ngā tapuhi ngā ritenga mahi i takea mai i te taunakitanga, he uaua te whakatinana i te ao tiaki tūroro.

Keywords / Ngā kupu matua
Nurses/Ngā tapuhi; evidence based practice/ngā ritenga mahi i takea mai i te taunakitanga, understanding/ te māramatanga, attitudes/ngā waiaro, utilisation/te whakamahinga, barriers/ngā maioro