Nursing and general clinical practice advocate for evidence-based practice to be applied in healthcare for the benefit of both the staff and the patients. Evidence-based practice has been defined as the conscientious application of recent best evidence when making decisions regarding patient care (Evidence-Based Practice, 2017). It incorporates three main components. These components include a critical approach to clinical questions, patients’ values and preferences, and a clinician’s expertise (Evidence-Based Practice, 2017). These three components need to be blended effectively to have the ultimate benefit for both the patient and the staff.
Palliative care refers to a kind of treatment that is highly specialized and advanced to patients suffering from serious kinds of illness. Objectively, the main goal of palliative care is to relieve symptoms and stress and improve the quality of life of the patient. In this case, the benefits also include the family members of the patient. Some of the psychosocial issues that are involved in palliative care include the capability to handle depression, managing denial, and coping with stigmatization. However, these psychosocial issues either get ignored or are dealt with haphazardly and this leads to further complications.
Evidence-based approaches are instrumental when addressing psychosocial issues in palliative care. According to Kleinpell (2013), a practitioner must adhere to an ideal measurement of outcomes to evaluate the effectiveness of a given intervention. The outcomes in patient treatment should be measured in reference to the psychosocial issues. For example, the issue of coping with stigmatization can be effectively measured using support groups that evaluate a patient’s progress over a given period. This can be accompanied by assessing the knowledge that the patient has acquired and the level of positivity he or she has embraced. Advancing further treatment in reference to such evidence ensures that the patient benefits from the care.
References
Evidence-Based Practice, (2017). Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses. Retrieved from https://www.amsn.org/practice-resources/evidence-based-practice.
Kleinpell, M.R. (2013). Outcome Assessment in Advanced Practice Nursing: Third Edition. New York, Springer Publishing Company.
