A Global Approach to Promoting Evidence-Based Practice Knowledge: Validating the Translated Version of the Evidence-Based Practice Knowledge Assessment in Nursing Into Spanish.

BACKGROUND: Government and professional organizations have issued a call for evidence-based practice (EBP), prompting the development of competencies and expectations for knowledge, skills, and attitudes. However, EBP is still inconsistently implemented. To advance the science of nursing globally, educators and leaders need to use consistent, rigorous evaluation methods to assess the EBP knowledge of students and clinicians. AIMS: This study sought to translate the Evidence-based Practice Knowledge Assessment in Nursing (EKAN) instrument into Spanish, evaluate the psychometric performance of the newly translated instrument, and establish a baseline measure of EBP knowledge of baccalaureate nursing (BSN) students for future program improvement. METHODS: This study utilized a cross-sectional, descriptive, correlational design. A total of 139 BSN students were recruited from a single study site in the Dominican Republic. Subjects completed the 20-item EKAN-Spanish, which was translated and back-translated to promote semantic accuracy. RESULTS AND FINDINGS: Infit and outfit statistics for the sample centered around 1.0 (weighted mean square = 0.978; unweighted mean square = 0.988), indicating strong evidence of validity. The individual items on the EKAN-Spanish showed item reliability of 0.94. The mean EBP knowledge score was 6.52 (SD = 2.03) with scores ranging from 2 to 12 points (20 points maximum). Differential item functioning (DIF) analysis supported translational accuracy. DISCUSSION: This study provides validation support for an objective assessment of EBP knowledge in the Spanish language and will be useful for future studies of EBP in over 21 Spanish-speaking countries. LINKING EVIDENCE TO ACTION: While EBP is a global nursing concept, there has been no instrument to objectively measure EBP knowledge across levels of education in academe and practice in Spanish-speaking countries until just recently. The availability of a validated instrument will promote global consistency in assessing EBP knowledge. Further, this will promote a collaborative approach in teaching EBP to nursing students and practicing nurses.

Cultural adaptation and reliability testing of the Chinese version of evidence-based practice knowledge assessment in nursing: A cross-sectional study.

Objective: The EKAN is a reliable and validated tool for objectively measuring the evidence-based practice (EBP) knowledge of nurses. Thus, we set out to translate and culturally modify the Evidence-Based Practice Knowledge Assessment in Nursing (EKAN), and then evaluate its validity and reliability among Chinese practicing nurses. Methods: This cross-sectional study consisted of two phases. The first phase involved translating the EKAN into Chinese (EKAN-Chinese), using a process of forward translation, back translation, review, cultural adjustment as well as a pilot study. The second phase aimed to assess the psychometric properties of the EKAN-Chinese and establish a baseline measure of EBP knowledge among 120 nurses from a large general hospital in Beijing, China. Data were collected from August to November 2022 and analyzed with Rasch software. This study was reported using the cross-sectional STROBE checklist. Results: The newly translated, EKAN-Chinese was pilot-tested after slight modification of four items without altering the intended meaning. The outfit unweighted mean square was 1.03 (SD = -0.13), the infit weighted mean square was 1.00 (-0.17), and the mean difficulty index ranged from -3.43 to 2.85 according to validity indices. The results of the reliability indices revealed low person reliability (0.49), high item reliability (0.96), moderate person separation index (0.99), and sufficient item separation index (4.71). The mean EKAN-Chinese sum score was 9.8 (max score = 20, SD = 2.9). Conclusion: The newly translated EKAN-Chinese showed sufficient psychometric evidence to support use in practicing Chinese nurses. The EKAN-Chinese can be used by nurse leaders in China as a potential screening tool to 1) objectively identify nurses who need educational training in evidence-based nursing practice, and 2) gauge the effectiveness of education and training programs to improve EBP knowledge and ultimately, evidence-based care.