Research education for clinical nurses: A pilot study to determine research self-efficacy in critical care nurses

Background: Translating research into practice is essential to providing care that promotes both cost-efficient and effective health care delivery. Nurses practicing in the intensive care unit are in need of education that can build research self-efficacy and promote understanding and the ability to apply research findings. Methods: This pilot study evaluated the Critical Reading of Research Publications Plus course with intensive care unit nurses to determine whether this experience would affect their research self-efficacy. The Nursing Research Self-Efficacy Scale was administered before and after the course. Results: Paired t tests showed a significant increase on three of the four subscales in research self-efficacy. Conclusion: This study shows that using a course along with mentors may increase the research self-efficacy of practicing nurses.