Reviews of units of care: combining practice, research and quality assurance

Abstract

That nurses should base their practice on the best available knowledge is generally accepted by the profession. However, the operationalisation of this ideal is difficult for hard pressed clinicians. We believe that responsibility for assimilating current knowledge in a practical format belongs to all nurses working in an organisation. This paper describes a project where clinicians, administrators and academics have collaborated to rewrite standards of practice in a format that includes up to date evidence and practical measures for appraising outcomes. This work is a practical example of quality assurance activities serving to create opportunities for collaboration between nurses who have chosen to practice, teach, manage and/or research nursing.