Tools of the trade: Improving nurses' ability to access and evaluate research

To evaluate the effect of a manager-required RN competency on staff nurses' perceived knowledge, ability and frequency of information-seeking activities.

Basing clinical practice on research and standards of care is essential to delivering appropriate care with optimal outcomes. Nurses' information-seeking abilities are critical for acquiring evidence-based answers to aid clinical decision-making, yet nurses under-utilize library resources and report barriers. A unit manager sought to test the effect of an innovative competency for acquiring and appraising evidence for practice.

This longitudinal descriptive study evaluated 28 nurses before and after a 1-hr class, as well as 5 months later. The class covered library information services and the basics of critiquing research articles.

Nurses had statistically significant improvements in four of five items measuring knowledge/ability and four of five items measuring frequency of information-seeking activities. At 5 months, most knowledge/ability items increased. There was no effect of nurse characteristics on outcomes.

A required competency improved nurses' knowledge, ability and frequency of acquiring and appraising evidence with a single 1-hr class and a hands-on practice activity. Unit managers can have great impact on nurses' use of evidence for practice.