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The American Association of Nurse Anesthetists (AANA) is committed to advancing evidence-based nurse anesthesia practice. This determination is evident across multiple activities within the Association. This editorial describes the AANA's evidence-based policy and process for the development of those practice- related documents that require approval from the AANA Board of Directors. Additionally, several of the Association's initiatives geared toward fostering the advancement of evidence-based nurse anesthesia practice are described.
Keywords: Evidence-based practice, evidence-based process, nurse anesthesia practice, quality care.
The past decade has brought further attention to the need for safe and appropriate healthcare by the American public. This highlight has been prompted by many factors, including economics and the Institute of Medicine's call for adherence to an evidence-based approach to care.1 In response, the AANA Board of Directors (BOD) recognized a need to ensure that the profession's Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) members continue to practice in an evidence-based manner.
In 2007, the BOD approved an Association objective to develop a plan to advance evidence-based (EB) nurse anesthesia practice. The first step toward completion of this objective occurred when then- President Wanda O. Wilson, CRNA, PhD, charged the AANA Practice Committee (PC) with the responsibility for developing an EB policy and process for practice-related documents that require AANA BOD approval. In doing so, Wilson and the BOD sought to create a highly structured process that would ensure the use of the best available evidence whenever a practicerelated document is created or revised. This systematic EB process would also serve as a basis for analyzing and resolving important issues for the profession and clinical practice as the body of knowledge affecting nurse anesthesia care continues to grow exponentially. The AANA EB process would also minimize individual biases that might occur while the rigor and quality of available evidence is assessed.
Defining Evidence-Based Nurse Anesthesia Practice
As the Practice Committee considered its charge, the need to define "evidence-based nurse anesthesia practice" and its essential critical elements was identified. Definitions of EB practice were sought by reviewing the nursing and medical literature over the past 3 decades, as well as writings from other healthcare and healthcare-related disciplines, including physical therapy, occupational therapy, sociology, and psychology. After analyzing these definitions, the PC recommended a definition of...