Evidence-Based Practice Additional Resources

ARN volunteers have created tools and resources to help y

Evidence-based nursing is defined as searching the literature and utilizing the best available evidence, in addition to considering clinical expertise and patient values or preferences as related to a patient care problem or question, to make patient care decisions that provide the best possible patient outcomes. (DiCenso, Guyatt, & Ciliska, 2005; Flodgren, Rojas-Reyes, Cole, & Foxcroft, 2012; Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2011; Pierce, 2007).

ARN's Evidence-Based Rehabilitation Nursing: Common Challenges and Interventions

Get your questions answered on evidence-based approaches to rehab nursing with this 2nd edition publication, available only in hard copy. The book covers 17 patient problems, from bowel and bladder to nutrition and mobility. For each focus area, it provides scientific evidence and then evaluates the evidence and lists five essential steps for practice to support evidence-based rehab nursing care.

Read Evidence-Based Rehabilitation Nursing: Common Challenges and Interventions

Multiple Sclerosis Clinical Practice Guideline

ARN and the American Association of Neuroscience Nurses (AANN) have partnered with the International Organization of Multiple Sclerosis Nurses (IOMSN) in the development of the Care of the Patient with Multiple Sclerosis clinical practice guideline. This is the second guideline to be developed collaboratively between ARN and AANN and promotes evidence-based practice for the adult patient with multiple sclerosis (MS) across the continuum of care.
Download Care of the Patient with Multiple Sclerosis (PDF)

AHA Statement on Post-Stroke Depression

"Poststroke Depression: A Scientific Statement for Healthcare Professionals From the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association," published in Stroke, an AHA Journal, is a multispecialty statement providing a comprehensive review of the current evidence and gaps in current knowledge of the epidemiology, pathophysiology, outcomes, management, and prevention of PSD, and provides implications for clinical practice.

This statement is particularly relevant to rehab nurses, as it contains significant information about interventions and outcomes, which can impact the quality of care and assure best practices are implemented.

AHA Guidelines for Adult Stroke Rehabilitation and Recovery

The "Guidelines for Adult Stroke Rehabilitation and Recovery" published in Stroke, an AHA Journal, aim to provide a synopsis of best clinical practices in the rehabilitative care of adults recovering from stroke. These guidelines provide valuable information on early-supported discharge (ESD) rehab nursing services, prevention, medical management of comorbidities, and much more.

You practice Rehabilitation Nursing to the best of your abilities. Tools to document basic rehabilitation nursing competencies, measure staff performance, connect with peers, and to support you throughout your career.

Competency Model for Professional Rehabilitation Nursing

Defines the core domains and competencies required of beginner, intermediate, and advanced level professional rehabilitation nurses in today’s healthcare environment.

PATH-s Instrument

The Preparedness Assessment for the Transition Home after Stroke (PATH-s) instrument was developed by Michelle Camicia and Barbara J. Lutz through research funded by a Rehabilitation Nurses Foundation grant. Consisting of a 25-item self-report, this instrument is a freely accessible downloadable document intended to help healthcare providers develop tailored care plans that address identified gaps and better prepare caregivers to transition patients home after stroke.

For even more resources, visit the ARN Learning Center.

COVID-19

General Resources by Public Health Organizations

• CDC: Information for Health Care Professionals 
• WHO Resources and Situation Reports.
• Mayo Clinic: COVID-19: Who's at higher risk of serious symptoms?
• NIH: National Institutes of Health COVID-19 Updates
• Johns Hopkins Nursing: A series of podcasts on the different aspects of nursing considerations related to COVID-19.

Telehealth and Virtual Medical Services

• Department of Health and Human Services: Information on telehealth
• CMS: Resources for expanding telehealth options

Medicare and Medicaid Updates

• CMS, CMS.gov
  • COVID-19 resources page
  • Presentation on CMS Waivers and COVID-19 Response (1135 Waivers)
  • COVID-19 Emergency Declaration Blanket Waivers for Health Care Providers
  • Waivers for Health Care Providers 
  • Guidance for Infection Control and Prevention Concerning Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) 
  • CMS Announces Relief for Clinicians, Providers, Hospitals and Facilities Participating in Quality Reporting Programs in Response to COVID-19

Guidance for Standards of Care & Clinical Strategies

• Rehabilitation for Post COVID-19 Condition, live presentation by WHO on October 6, 2021, 1:30 pm CT—FREE
• Managing Patients with Long-Term Effects of COVID-19: Nursing Priorities and Interventions, presented in partnership with ANA by Mary Ellen Hatch, MSN RN CRRN and Michelle Camicia, PhD RN CRRN CCM NEA-BC FAHA FARN FAAN—1.25 CH, FREE
• Rehabilitation After COVID-19 (Breathing is Only the Beginning), presented by Sally Strong, RN APRN CNRN CRRN—1.25 CH, FREE
• Re-engineering Fall Prevention During COVID-19: Observations from the Field, presented by Amy Hester, PhD RN BC, and Patricia Quigley, PhD MPH APRN FAAN FAANP FARNA
• Nursing’s Role in Health Equity, Public Health Emergencies, and COVID-19, hosted by The National Academy of Medicine and representatives from the NAM study on the Future of Nursing 2020-2030.
• COVID-19 in the Rehabilitation Setting–Q&A Session, moderated by rehabilitation nursing expert Michele Cournan, DNP RN ANP-BC FNP CRRN
• Prep for COVID-19 Admissions & Patient Care in Rehab Facilities: Panel Discussion, co-hosted by ARN and MedBridge, presented by Michelle Camicia, PhD MSN RN CRRN CCM NEA-BC FAHA; Michele Cournan, DNP RN ANP-BC FNP CRRN; and Jill Rye, DNP RN CRRN CNL FARN
• The Impact of COVID-19 on Neurorehabiltative Care & Research, hosted by World Federation for NeuroRehabillitation (WFNR)
• On-demand ANA COVID-19 Webinar Series, including "Ventilator Management: Essential Skills for Non-ICU Nurses," "Be Confident Protecting Yourself and Providing the Best Care to Your Patients during this COVID-19 Pandemic," and "How to Respond to Ethical Challenges and Moral Distress during the COVID-19 Pandemic."
• Illinois Health Care Association, Facebook Live COVID-19 Update
• ANA, NursingWorld.org
  • ANA, Crisis Standards of Care
  • Guidance related to nurses who are interested in volunteering 
• AMRPA: COVID-19 Resources - Federal Agency Guidance and Resources to Address COVID-19
• WHO: Rehabilitation needs of people recovering from COVID-19

Policy and Advocacy

• View ARN Health Policy news coverage, including monthly digests that cover ARN’s advocacy activities in response to COVID-19

Peer-Reviewed COVID-19 Resources for Nurses

• Resources from Lippincott Nursing Center (Rehabilitation Nursing Journal publisher)

Mental Health Resources

• Mental Health During COVID-19 Part 1: Rehab Patients and Caregivers, co-hosted by ARN and MedBridge, presented by Laurie Ferguson, PhD, Steven Powell, MSN, RN-BC, CRRN, and Michelle Camicia, PhD, RN, PHN, CRRN, CCM, NEA-BC, FAHA
• Mental Health During COVID-19 Part 2: Supporting the Well-Being of Staff, co-hosted by ARN and MedBridge, presented by Laurie J. Ferguson, PhD, Steven Powell, MSN, RN-BC, CRRN, and Tonisha J. Melvin, DNP, APRN, CRRN, ANP-C
• ANA, Free COVID-19 Self-Care Package for Nurses, includes 5.8 free CE credits
• WHO, Mental Health Considerations
• CDC, Managing Stress Anxiety
• Well-being Index
• Provider Resilience
• Ten Percent Happier, an app that offers mindful meditation, is currently free to healthcare professionals

Resources to Provide to Patients

• Recovering from COVID-19: A Patient Guide

Contribute to Our Resources

If you work in an inpatient facility or in the community, we know you are developing innovative strategies to manage the crisis and protect yourselves and others as you provide the best care possible to all patients – those who need rehab and those who have the coronavirus. Please let us know what we can do to help you in this fight. If you have other resources that you think may be helpful, please send them to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..