ABSTRACT
Nurses increasingly need to base decisions and actions on the best possible evidence and appropriateness in order to contribute to improvements in patient care and maintain professional accountability. Clinical guidelines are an important tool for enhancing and informing this process. The setting of clinical guidelines is becoming an increasingly important aspect of nursing and healthcare strategies to ensure quality and in the utilisation of good risk management practices. Nurses provide 80% of hands-on care to patients and clients, so they are uniquely placed to make a difference to the day-to-day care delivery. This places nurses in the key position to develop evidence-based nursing care and to collaborate with other professionals and organisations to achieve more effective care.
