title: Unit culture and research-based nursing practice in acute care.
abstract: The purpose of this multiple-case study of research utilization (RU) was to examine whether and how nursing practices in acute-care units are built on research and to identify potential explanations for the observed patterns. Open-ended data were collected from staff nurses and nursing leaders on 8 acute-care units through interviews and observation. RU varied within and across units, but unit culture emerged as the principal factor linked to patterns of RU. Unit-culture themes that formed the links were harmony of research perspective, motivation to learn, goal orientation, creativity, critical inquiry, mutual respect, and maximization of resources. The findings provide a rich description that could serve as a basis for self-assessment of unit culture in inpatient and outpatient acute-care units.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: Carolyn J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Pepler
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Edgar
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Frisch
authors.forename: Janet
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rennick
authors.forename: Marika
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Swidzinski
authors.forename: Carole
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: White
authors.forename: Thomas G
authors.initials: TG
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gross
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease / Q000451:nursing*; D015400:Clinical Nursing Research / Q000639:trends*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006801:Humans; D009042:Motivation