Why does evidence matter? Without question, the overarching aim of nurses and organizational leaders in clinical practice settings is to improve patient outcomes through the diligent use of evidence in the delivery of care. However, we fall short of that goal, as first highlighted almost 20 years ago in the Institute of Medicine report Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century.1  This highly publicized report was the first to cite the wide gap in the US health care system between the high cost of care and poor quality of care outcomes. In addition, the report emphasized the unacceptably long time required to move new evidence into the foreground of clinical practice arenas.1,2  To help close the quality gap, the Institute of Medicine partnered with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to commission the report Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health,...

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