Effective methods for disseminating research findings to nurses in practice

Professionals in all disciplines are challenged by the proliferation of new knowledge. Nurses, too, must find cost-effective ways of ensuring that their patients are benefiting from the most current knowledge about health and illness. The methods of research dissemination to clinicians described in this article are presumed to be effective because of anecdotal reports, conference evaluations, or clinician surveys. The profession needs more sophisticated evaluations of the effectiveness of various dissemination methods. In the meantime, whether you are a researcher, an administrator, an educator, or a clinician, you have a role to play in improving research dissemination. Implement just one strategy from this article and evaluate the results. Each contribution moves nursing toward research-based practice.