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LIBRARIANS BECOME ACTORS FOR NURSES
NURSING PRACTICE COURT Original Play BY JEAN SLEPIAN AND THE EVIDENCE BASED NURSING GROUP AT CHESHIRE MEDICAL CENTER, KEENE, NH MRSA VERSION OF NURSING PRACTICE COURT BY BARBARA DAVIS, NEWPORT HOSPITAL, NEWPORT, RI; MIMI GUESSFERD, PARKLAND MEDICAL CENTER, DERRY, NH; & SHEILA HAYES, PORTSMOUTH REGIONAL HOSPITAL, PORTSMOUTH, NH. What Have We Learned about the Evidence Based Process The purpose of Nursing Practice Court is to provide a mechanism for cross-disciplinary nursing staff members to identify a topic of concern in their institution, to find evidence based literature to support decisions about a particular issue or process, to make decisions that are based on the available evidence, and to present findings in a humorous and non-threatening environment. Often in health care, things are done in a particular way because "we have always done it that way" rather than because evidence supports a new method of practice. This play or "psycho-drama" might also be considered a form of "play therapy" in the sense that it allows health personnel from many disciplines to "play" together creatively to find a solution. Nursing Practice Court facilitates an institution’s discussion on a topic by having members create a problem-based exercise to identify a topic or process that might be considered an issue, to research the literature in the library and in other sources, and to forward a discussion that leads to greater understanding of both the topic and other health care professionals. The play is meant to be performed by a wide variety of participants who do not have the answers to their questions but who are willing to look for the best answers in the evidence based literature. Topics may be chosen based on a risk management issue, a patient safety initiative, a hospital complaint, or a question about which procedure is the "right one to use". Participants do not have to be actors! However, they do have to be committed to looking for the best answers and to communicating the information to the greater hospital staff. For example, nurses in the Operating Room might be interested in instituting a process of "Time Out" prior to beginning a surgical procedure. Before the play can be performed, the Nursing Practice Court team will need to look in the journal literature to determine "best practice"; this will include learning about the library and the services it provides. They will need to write the dialogue for the play in such a way that it presents the information and informs practice in their institution. Staff will learn that there is usually more than one way to solve a problem and more than one way to interpret the data. The dialogue of the play is meant to be open-ended so that an individual institution can present its own problem and seek its solution creatively and collaboratively. The play may be used as a medium to address an institutional process or problem, to market the library and its knowledge-based services to hospital staff, to enhance cooperation between the library and nursing education, and/or to present information about the process of evidence based research to staff. It is hoped that the institution’s library will be a willing participant in the production of this play and, therefore, act as an educational and research-based "change agent". Sheila Hayes represented the New England RAC-Hospital Subcommittee at MLA on May 20th as a presenter in the Nursing Section. The acting members of the RAC (Mark Goldstein, Barbara Davis, Margo Coletti & Anne Fladger) preformed three segments of the play for attendees. The RAC presented the whole Play at the North Atlantic Health Science Libraries Conference in October, 2007. The city of Woodstock, Vermont graciously opened their courthouse so the Play could be preformed in a real courtroom. If you would like to discuss performing the Play at your institution give Sheila a call 603 433-4094 or email her at: Sheila.hayes@hcahealthcare.com. Submitted by Sheila Hayes, M.S., A.H.I.P. Librarian – Knowledgebase Information Services Portsmouth Regional Hospital Portsmouth, New Hampshire Send comments regarding this site to:Sheila Hayes This site was last updated on: 09/10/2007 |
