The EBP topic I have picked is on the factors that affect health staff from following guidelines to avoid infection transmission.
The two articles are:
Article 1: Efstathiou, G., Papastavrou, E., Raftopoulos, V. et al. Factors influencing nurses' compliance with Standard Precautions in order to avoid occupational exposure to microorganisms: A focus group study. BMC Nurs 10, 1 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6955-10-1.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Article 2: Bouchoucha, S. L., & Moore, K. A. (2019). Factors influencing adherence to standard precautions scale: A psychometric validation. Nursing & health sciences, 21(2), 178-185.
To be an effective nurse it is imperative that one has adequate knowledge on the theory aspect of it. Theory is at the center of nursing practice which makes it very important in nursing education. Theory steers development of knowledge, it directs research and practice and provides foundations for nursing practice. Basically, theory equips nurses with all the information needed to ensure they can practice nursing. Nursing practice is the application of all the knowledge gained from theory to ensure the care provided by nurses is in line with the accepted standards. In an ideal situation all decisions regarding patient care come from research-evidence. Research findings are used to develop a protocol which is followed in daily nursing practice. Though research, theory and practice are obviously interrelated, they also have differences. Theory steers the process of research, it shapes the research questions, aids in design, analysis and interpretation. It enables the scientist to bring the facts together. Research is the process of applying methodology to develop new knowledge. Theory is the product of knowledge. Practice tests theory to make sure it is correct.
The Environment Theory by Florence Nightingale is a patient-care theory for nursing. Its main focus is on patient care, nursing process, patient-nurse relationship, or the individual nurse. The model is fashioned to fit the needs of each patient. The environmental factors affect individual patients uniquely to their circumstances and illnesses. The nurse must address these factors according to the different cases in order to make sure the factors are changed to ensure best care is delivered to a patient and their needs are met. I believe this theory would help change how healthcare staff looks at the procedures and standards available for them to prevent infection. If the personnel rightly follow all the concepts of this theory then they would ensure they are adequately treating the patient with the relevant measures to ensure there is not spread of infections.
Article 1 uses a qualitative approach; Focus groups made up of nurses were used in order to form perceptions of the research problem. Nurses from various specialties were invited to participate. The health belief model was used in this instance and the data collected was analyzed according to predetermined criteria. Article 2 used a quantitative approach, nurses were interviewed. They compiled standard questions that were reviewed by specific health specialists. Results of the data collected are numerical in nature and analyzed in numbers or counts which are used for qualitative data, for instance male mean age and female mean age. The difference between the two is that qualitative research looks at a problem from the people who are experiencing it to gain information and an in-depth view. Qualitative research observes the effects of the problem and collects more breadth of information across a large number of cases. From the articles chosen it is clear that in article 1, the participants are not using structured response options unlike Article 2 that has defined structured options.
The technology used to collect the articles was my personal computer and my smart phone. The databases I accessed are Google, Google scholar, Cochrane Library, Scopus, Web of science, various health organization websites and educational websites. These all assisted me with correctly defining and understanding certain terms and gaining clarity on certain things. I used a multitude of search terms like; theories on risk and safety, articles on healthcare safety, articles on evidence based researches, quantitative and qualitative methods of research, understanding theory, research and practice.
Both researches share the same philosophical perspective which is pragmatist. This is because they are both based on a fact, which in this case is the highlighted research problem. Also, the methods and techniques used were the best fit for their needs and helpful in achieving their aim. Article 1 uses the health belief model (HBM) as a theoretical framework, it uses this model to better understand the perceptions and beliefs derived from the focus groups conducted. Article 2 uses a psychometric theory, this theory uses measurement theories owing to the fact that a qualitative approach is used. The methodology used in Article 1 is qualitative, whereas Article 2 uses quantitative.
One of the ethical issues that I noticed in Article 1 is that they do not specify the healthcare facilities were they got participants from, although they at least mention were these hospitals are located. Article 2 does not even mention how participants were selected, all that is mentioned is that they needed to be registered nurses. I believe it is important for them to share all the details. One of the issues regarding scientific integrity for both the articles is how they selected their participants. There is no proper visibility that indicates that they did not practice any biasness whilst selecting, this may lead to queries about the objectivity of the picked participants.
Research has greatly assisted in expanding my knowledge in various topics. It has helped me find improved practices for numerous issues. Some findings made me realize how I had been doing things the wrong way. Definitely correcting a lot of misunderstandings I had. A lot of research has paved the way for the improvement of many practices through all the new guidelines that are implemented. I am continually learning and improving all thanks to research.
