title: Defining what evidence is, linking it to patient outcomes, and making it relevant to practice: insight from clinical nurses.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Factors that impede or enable successful evidence based practice for nurses in their daily work is well documented. Less known is how nurses define evidence in their daily clinical practice and how this knowledge can inform strategies to enhance evidence based patient care and outcomes.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  A qualitative study was undertaken to explore nurses' perceptions of what constitutes evidence as part of EBP and how applicable evidence is to their daily practice. A qualitative design using semi-structured interviews was employed for this study. Data were analyzed using directed content analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The following four key themes emerged: viewing evidence as research based and a proven practice; linking evidence to patient outcomes; basing evidence on experience; and making evidence relevant to practice.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Study findings point to having accessible, practical tools to make evidence credible and relevant for nurses tailored to their clinical contexts.
authors: Keenan Research Centre of the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael's, Toronto, Ontario M5B 1W8, Canada. jeffsl@smh.ca
authors: Lianne
authors: L
authors: Jeffs
authors: Susan
authors: S
authors: Beswick
authors: Joyce
authors: J
authors: Lo
authors: Heather
authors: H
authors: Campbell
authors: Ella
authors: E
authors: Ferris
authors: Souraya
authors: S
authors: Sidani
mesh_terms: D055318:Evidence-Based Nursing; D009740:Nursing Staff; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care
keywords: Best practice guideline implementation; Nurses view on evidence