Week 1

During week one I will say that I have spent most of my time familiarizing myself with the course objectives and getting a stronger understanding of evidence-based practice. I feel I need more of an understanding so that I can identify when evidence based practice is incorporated into my own day to day nursing practice. After reading the lecture notes and going through the course resources I see that evidence based practice is highly resourceful in the field of nursing and the implementation continues to increase satisfactory patient outcomes. Additionally, “Evidence based practice is the conscientious use of current best evidence in making decisions about patient care” (Perdu University, 2017).

But in week one I learned that there are issues when getting nurses to engage in evidence based practice and adhere to the standards. Studies have shown that there are several reasons why nurses fail to adhere to EBP standards, but some factors include, lack of time, inability to understand statistical terms, and inadequate understanding of the jargon used in research articles (Majid, et al., 2011). Overall, I believe that hospitals, clinics, and medical offices should become more involved in pushing the importance of EBP because as nurses we are always involved with clinical decision-making processes.

Week one has also got me acquainted with the mentor mentee relationship as my mentor is a nurse that works at my hospital. I see her as an important support system for me throughout this course, and a necessary guide throughout my education and practice. I had a great discussion with my mentor going over the course objectives and discussing her expectations of me along with my goals. We also came up with success strategies and a list of readings for times when I feel overwhelmed or discouraged. Furthermore, we agreed that communication was key throughout the course and that I active communication was essential to be successful.

Benchmark – Professional Capstone and Practicum Reflective Journal References