to evaluate information and make informed decisions. As Gilmour, Scott, and
Huntington (2008) note:
Nurses in our study were concerned about the quality of Internet health
information, judged by criteria such as the use of research-based evidence,
evidence of peer review, named authors and currency of information. Their
evaluative practices were in sharp contrast to the findings by Fox (2006) that
75% of public health information-seeker respondents (n = 2928) checked
the source and date only sometimes at best. (p. 27)
Books such as The Patient Safety Perspective: Health Information and Resources
Online and in Print (Burt, 2013), The Knowledgeable Patient: Communication
and Participation in Health (Hill & Cochrane Collection, 2011), Health Technol-
ogy Literacy: A Transdisciplinary Framework for Consumer-Oriented Practice
(Jordan-Marsh, 2011), and Surviving Health Care: A Manual for Patients and
Their Families (Kimbrough Kushner, 2010) provide nurses with an insightful
understanding of the structure and use of healthcare resources available on
the Internet. Resources such as these position nurses to assist patients with
obtaining accurate information.
Nurses have an ethical responsibility to skillfully use all tools and resources
available. Not everything is, or will ever be, available electronically. Nurses
should be aware of and use print materials that are still current and viable.
Conversely, because not all electronic resources based on print resources are
comprehensive and some contain older or archival information, research ques-
tions can take reviewers back to older print journals or indexes.
Many reputable government, organizational, and educational resources
are available on the Internet (sites that are free and accessible to all), such
as Valparaiso University Christopher Center Library’s Nursing Libguide:
Evidence-Based Practice Resource (http://libguides.valpo.edu/content
.php?pid=42078&sid=337662) and the University of Washington Health
Sciences Library’s Evidence-Based Practice LibGuide (http://guides.lib.uw.edu
/friendly.php?s=hsl/ebp). There are also many restricted resources, such as
literature databases (often paid for by a school or hospital) and resources within
organizational sites available only to members. These restricted resources usu-
ally contain professional literature that has been compiled, sorted, indexed,
and made available. Content in these resources is written for professional
colleagues, not for the lay person or the consumer. It is not unreasonable to
expect nurses to be well versed in both the professional and lay perspectives,
using professional resources to keep current about practice while also helping
patients as consumers of health care.
Access to academic, health sciences, or hospital library resources is vital to
quality literature review. Because each library and database has its own best
KEY TERM
indexes: A listing of
electronic or print
resources4.1 Purpose of Finding Evidence 95