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Join the (journal) club!

Nurse Leader Weekly, March 13, 2006

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A journal club consists of a group of nurses who meet regularly to discuss and critique research articles appearing in scientific journals. Creating one is a good way to get started in evidence-based nursing practice (EBP). Journal clubs provide nurses with the opportunity and skills to read and critically evaluate current research and to determine its applicability to their practice area.

The journal club's goals may vary by setting. In the beginning, a goal might be to learn how to appraise research and other evidence-based practice articles critically. Later goals may include keeping up-to-date with the current research in the field or evaluating current practice based on the evidence related to a particular issue.

Guidelines for journal clubs

1. Determine nurses' level of interest. Notices placed on bulletin boards or electronic lists can provide the goals of the journal club and act as vehicles for recruitment.

2. Establish the support and participation of nursing leadership early on in the development phase to make organizational issues easier to address.

3. Meeting schedules should be set up ahead of time and align with staff availability. Lunchtime or change-of-shift are two logical options, but also consider the night shift. Determine meeting frequency by each particular setting.

4. Choose a convenient meeting location.

5. Identify journal articles for discussion. Electronic databases make literature searches easy to perform.

6. Select topics that are clinically relevant to the members of the group. Journal clubs work best if the nurses identify research topics that are relevant to their practice setting. In the early phase of the journey to EBP, nurses must become confident, proficient, and competent in finding articles and in conducting a formal critique of nursing research articles. As their knowledge level progresses, identifying specific topics and asking relevant clinical questions for evidence-based practice will evolve.

7. Distribute copies of the selected article and any critique guidelines in advance to allow enough time for nurses to read them before the scheduled meeting. In organizations with electronic library resources, the article link may be e-mailed to participants.

8. The journal club can be interdisciplinary as long as it focuses on nursing practice.

9. Have fun, and encourage all to participate.

10. At the end of each session, evaluate the journal club and select a topic for the next meeting.

Editor's Note: This excerpt was taken from HCPro's new book Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing: A Guide to Successful Implementation by Suzanne C. Beyea, RN, PhD, FAAN and Mary Jo Slattery, RN, MS. For more information, click here.

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