In their article, Kieran Walshe and Thomas Rundall (2001) urge nurses and healthcare managers to embrace evidence-based management. They proceed to outline a process that the nurses and managers can adopt. The creation of a culture which facilitates evidence-based decision making is the first step of the process. Walshe and Rundall advise that healthcare organizations need to promote innovation, experimentation and critical analysis of evidence. As these organizations engage in these activities, they essentially set the stage for the adoption of evidence-based management. Next, the organizations should collect the evidence (Walshe & Rundall, 2001). The organizations need to define the questions that the evidence should answer. For example, the question could concern how the organization can reduce pain among patients. The organizations should also ensure that the research questions are relevant and significant. The third and last stage of the evidence-based management process involves reforming how an organization makes decisions. Walshe and Rundall propose that organizations should align their research questions and evidence with their decision making processes. It is also important for research insights to be presented to managers in a fashion that encourages understanding and implementation (Walshe & Rundall, 2001). Organizations should also disseminate the evidence across all concerned departments and divisions. The dissemination ensures that the research evidence presents organization-wide benefits.
The process that Walshe and Rundall present is indeed elaborate and could transform how organizations make decisions. However, it is rather unrealistic to expect managers to incorporate the process into their decision making. McCaughey (2010) collaborated with Bruning to explore the factors that hamper evidence based decision making. They note that as human beings, managers are inclined to rely on their own biases when making decisions. Essentially, even when presented with compelling evidence, managers are more likely to turn to their own intuition and wisdom. The implication of this is that it would be unrealistic to expect managers to implement the process that Walshe and Rundall present. Moreover, this process could require a manager to make far-reaching changes. For example, Walshe and Rundall recommend that managers should align their decision making process with the evidence that they have gathered. A manager may find realigning the decision making process to be too hectic. Therefore, it should not be surprising if managers reject the process that Walshe and Rundall recommend. Despite the changes that they may encounter, managers need to embrace evidence-based decision making as it is the key to effective healthcare delivery.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
References
McCaughey, D., & Bruning, N. S. (2010). Rationality versus Reality: The Challenges of Evidence-Based Decision Making for Health Policy Makers. Implementation Science, 5 (39). DOI: 10.1186/1748-5908-5-39.
Walshe, K., & Rundall, T. G. (2001). Evidence-Based Management: From Theory to Practice in Health Care. The Milbank Quarterly, 97 (3),429-457.
