NUR 590 Topic 1 DQ 2: EBP across two APRN specialties
Discuss the role of evidence-based practice in your own specialty area, then compare and contrast how EBP is used and implemented there with one other advanced registered nurse specialty.
Editorial process
Last reviewed · August 14, 2026
Two specialties, and why EBP looks different in each
The graded word is compare, and the post is only as good as the second specialty you pick. Choose one that genuinely differs rather than a neighbour: a family nurse practitioner against a nurse anaesthetist, a psychiatric nurse practitioner against an acute-care practitioner, a nurse midwife against a nurse executive. Then say what EBP actually consists of in each, because the answer is not the same. In primary care it is largely screening and chronic disease guidelines applied across a panel, with population-level measures and a strong preventive evidence base. In anaesthesia it is protocolised, high-consequence and immediate, with enhanced recovery pathways and safety checklists. In psychiatry the evidence base is thinner and noisier, effect sizes are smaller, measurement relies on rating scales rather than laboratory values, and clinical judgement carries more weight — which is a genuine difference in the role of evidence, not a failing.
Then make the comparison structural rather than descriptive, because listing two specialties in sequence is what a weak post does. Compare on named axes: how strong and how recent the evidence base is, who produces the guidelines, how fast new evidence reaches the bedside, what the barriers are, what outcomes are measurable and on what timescale, and how much room individual judgement has. The similarities are worth stating too, since the prompt asks for both: every advanced practice specialty works through the same process — ask a focused question, appraise the evidence, integrate patient values, apply and evaluate — and all of them face the same lag between publication and practice. Ground the whole thing in your own setting with one concrete example of an evidence-based change you have seen adopted or resisted, because that is what stops the post reading like a textbook comparison of two job titles.
Likely learning objectives
Inferred from the brief — check these against your own rubric.
- 01Describe the role EBP plays in a specific advanced practice specialty.
- 02Select a comparator specialty that genuinely differs.
- 03Compare EBP across named structural axes rather than in sequence.
- 04Identify what is common to EBP in every specialty.
Read the full question
Review every instruction before using the planning guidance that follows.
Course-wide instructions that accompany this question
ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS Discussion Questions (DQ) Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, include a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words. Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source. One or two sentence responses, simple statements of agreement or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words. I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses. Weekly Participation Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately. In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies. Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work). Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week. APA Format and Writing Quality Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required). Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation. I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition. Use of Direct Quotes I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’ level and deduct points accordingly. As Masters’ level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content. It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source. LopesWrite Policy For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me. Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes. Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own? Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score. Late Policy The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies. Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances. If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect. I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension. As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading. Communication Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me: Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class. Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours. Grading Rubric Guidelines Performance Category 10 9 8 4 0 Scholarliness Demonstrates achievement of scholarly inquiry for professional and academic decisions. Provides relevant evidence of scholarly inquiry clearly stating how the evidence informed or changed professional or academic decisions Evaluates literature resources to develop a comprehensive analysis or synthesis. Uses valid, relevant, and reliable outside sources to contribute to the threaded discussion Provides relevant evidence of scholarly inquiry but does not clearly state how the evidence informed or changed professional or academic decisions. Evaluates information from source(s) to develop a coherent analysis or synthesis. Uses some valid, relevant, reliable outside sources to contribute to the threaded discussion. Discusses using scholarly inquiry but does not state how scholarly inquiry informed or changed professional or academic decisions. Information is taken from source(s) with some interpretation/evaluation, but not enough to develop a coherent analysis or synthesis. Little valid, relevant, or reliable outside sources are used to contribute to the threaded discussion. Demonstrates little or no understanding of the topic. Discusses using scholarly inquiry but does not state how scholarly inquiry informed or changed professional or academic decisions. Information is taken from source(s) without any interpretation/evaluation. The posting uses information that is not valid, relevant, or reliable No evidence of the use of scholarly inquiry to inform or change professional or academic decisions. Information is not valid, relevant, or reliable Performance Category 10 9 8 4 0 Application of Course Knowledge – Demonstrate the ability to analyze, synthesize, and/or apply principles and concepts learned in the course lesson and outside readings and relate them to real-life professional situations Posts make direct reference to concepts discussed in the lesson or drawn from relevant outside sources; Applies concepts to personal experience in the professional setting and or relevant application to real life. Posts make direct reference to concepts discussed in the lesson or drawn from relevant outside sources. Applies concepts to personal experience in their professional setting and or relevant application to real life Interactions with classmates are relevant to the discussion topic but do not make direct reference to lesson content Posts are generally on topic but do not build knowledge by incorporating concepts and principles from the lesson. Does not attempt to apply lesson concepts to personal experience in their professional setting and or relevant application to real life Does not demonstrate a solid understanding of the principles and concepts presented in the lesson Posts do not adequately address the question posed either by the discussion prompt or the instructor’s launch post. Posts are superficial and do not reflect an understanding of the lesson content Does not attempt to apply lesson concepts to personal experience in their professional setting and or relevant application to real life Posts are not related to the topics provided by the discussion prompt or by the instructor; attempts by the instructor to redirect the student are ignored No discussion of lesson concepts to personal experience in the professional setting and or relevant application to real life Performance Category 5 4 3 2 0 Interactive Dialogue Replies to each graded thread topic posted by the course instructor, by Wednesday, 11:59 p.m. MT, of each week, and posts a minimum of two times in each graded thread, on separate days. (5 points possible per graded thread) Exceeds minimum post requirements Replies to each graded thread topic posted by the course instructor, by Wednesday, 11:59 p.m. MT, of each week, and posts three or more times in each graded thread, over three separate days. Replies to a post posed by faculty and to a peer Summarizes what was learned from the lesson, readings, and other student posts for the week. Replies to each graded thread topic posted by the course instructor, by Wednesday, 11:59 p.m. MT, of each week, and posts a minimum of two times in each graded thread, on separate days Replies to a question posed by a peer Summarizes what was learned from the lesson, readings, and other student posts for the week. Meets expectations of 2 posts on 2 different days. The main post is not made by the Wednesday deadline Does not reply to a question posed by a peer or faculty Has only one post for the week Discussion posts contain few, if any, new ideas or applications; often are a rehashing or summary of other students’ comments Does not post to the thread No connections are made to the topic Minus 1 Point Minus 2 Point Minus 3 Point Minus 4 Point Minus 5 Point Grammar, Syntax, APA Note: if there are only a few errors in these criteria, please note this for the student in as an area for improvement. If the student does not make the needed corrections in upcoming weeks, then points should be deducted. Points deducted for improper grammar, syntax and APA style of writing. The source of information is the APA Manual 6th Edition 2-3 errors in APA format. Written responses have 2-3 grammatical, spelling, and punctuation errors. Writing style is generally clear, focused, and facilitates communication. 4-5 errors in APA format. Writing responses have 4-5 grammatical, spelling and punctuation errors. Writing style is somewhat focused. 6-7 errors in APA format. Writing responses have 6-7 grammatical, spelling and punctuation errors. Writing style is slightly focused making discussion difficult to understand. 8-10 errors in APA format. Writing responses have 8-10 grammatical, spelling and punctuation errors. Writing style is not focused, making discussion difficult to understand. Post contains greater than 10 errors in APA format. Written responses have more than 10 grammatical, spelling and punctuation errors. Writing style does not facilitate communication. The student continues to make repeated mistakes in any of the above areas after written correction by the instructor 0 points lost -5 points lost Total Participation Requirements per discussion thread The student answers the threaded discussion question or topic on one day and posts a second response on another day. The student does not meet the minimum requirement of two postings on two different days Early Participation Requirement per discussion thread The student must provide a substantive answer to the graded discussion question(s) or topic(s), posted by the course instructor (not a response to a peer), by Wednesday, 11:59 p.m. MT of each week. The student does not meet the requirement of a substantive response to the stated question or topic by Wednesday at 11:59 pm MT.
Turn the brief into deliverables
- 01The role of EBP in your specialty area of practice.
- 02How EBP is implemented there in concrete terms.
- 03A second advanced registered nurse specialty for comparison.
- 04The contrasts between the two, along named dimensions.
- 05The similarities between them.
- 06APA citations and references.
Your specialty, theirs, and the contrast
What EBP means in practice
The process, briefly, so the comparison has a shared frame.
EBP in your specialty
The guidelines, the measures, the pace and the barriers you actually meet.
The comparator specialty
A genuinely different one, described on the same terms.
Comparing on axes
Evidence strength, guideline source, translation speed, measurable outcomes, judgement.
What is common to both
The process itself, the publication-to-practice lag, the barriers.
One example from your setting
An evidence-based change adopted or resisted, and why.
Where the specialty evidence bases differ
Recommended databases
- PubMed Central
- CINAHL
- Specialty organisation guidelines
- NCBI Bookshelf nursing texts
Search sequence
- 1.Identify the guideline-producing body for each specialty.
- 2.Compare how recently each published a major guideline.
- 3.Find evidence on the publication-to-practice lag.
- 4.Read the EBP competencies expected of advanced practice nurses.
- 5.Choose your comparator before drafting anything.
Reference shortlist
These are authoritative starting points, not a ready-made bibliography. A qualified reviewer must confirm that each source fits the assignment and supports the claim beside which it is cited.
Nothing here is cleared for citation until you have read it.
- 01
The establishment of evidence-based practice competencies for practicing registered nurses and advanced practice nurses in real-world clinical settings
Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing (via PubMed) · 2014
The competencies that apply across every specialty, which give the similarities.
- 02
Advanced Practice Registered Nurse Roles
StatPearls Publishing, via NCBI Bookshelf · 2024
The four APRN roles, which is where the comparator should come from.
- 03
Mapping Implementation Strategies and Outcomes When Using Evidence Based Practice Implementation Models in Nursing Settings: A Scoping Review
Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing · 2025
How implementation actually differs between settings.
- 04
Nursing Professional Development Evidence-Based Practice
StatPearls, NCBI Bookshelf, National Library of Medicine · 2023
The translation step, and the lag between publication and bedside.
Review before submission
Common mistakes
- Describing two specialties one after the other without comparing them.
- Choosing a comparator so similar that no contrast emerges.
- Defining EBP generically and never applying it to either specialty.
- Treating a thinner evidence base as a shortcoming rather than a condition.
- Omitting the similarities, which the prompt asks for as well.
- Giving no example from your own setting.
Submission checklist
- Your specialty's use of EBP is described concretely.
- The comparator specialty is genuinely different.
- At least three comparison axes are used.
- Similarities are addressed as well as differences.
- One example of adoption or resistance from your setting appears.
- Sources are current and cited in APA format.
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