Role of oncology nurses in integrated knowledge translation

Abstract

Oncology nurses are expected to deliver patient care using the best available evidence and to engage in a continuous cycle of finding and applying evidence into practice (CANO, 2013). To support nurses to use evidence in practice, several organizations have developed evidence-based resources: for example, CANO’s National Chemotherapy Administration Standards and the Oncology Nursing Society’s (2013) Putting Evidence into Practice cards for evidence-based symptom management. However, barriers to using evidence-based resources or guidelines in clinical practice occur at the level of the practitioner, the organization, and the resources (Legare & Zhang, 2013). Common nurse barriers are negative beliefs, attitudes and values of evidence-based practice and inadequate knowledge, skills and confidence to use these resources. Organizational barriers include lack of authority or cooperation to change patient care, lack of access to individuals with expertise in implementation, and lack of clear mandate to use research in practice. Finally, evidence-based resources are not necessarily designed using formats sensitive to how nurses think and what nurses do.