Research and the mandate for evidence-based practice, quality, and patient safety

This chapter presents events and findings that influence this scientific interest in healthcare quality and safety. It includes descriptions of the underlying reasons for the emphasis on quality improvement and safety, frameworks for conceptualizing and studying improvement and safety, methods used for such investigations, and new resources and future trends in improvement and safety research. In addition, the chapter explores how evidence-based practice achieves quality and safety in healthcare by reflecting nursing theory, research, science, and practice to meet the mandate for improved population health. It defines the relationship among evidence-based practice, implementation science, and quality. It devotes to quality and to safety, highlighting dominant thinking and research advances. The chapter concludes with a look to the future of quality and safety, examining recent advances and suggesting directions in theory, research, and science.