Nurses’ Use of a Web-Based National Guide for Child Health Care

Rikshandboken i Barnhälsovård is a Swedish Web-based guide for child healthcare, providing quality-ensured guidelines and support contributing to equality in child healthcare among all children. In 2015, a new child healthcare program was implemented and made available in this Web-based guide. The aim of this study was to investigate how child healthcare nurses use Rikshandboken i Barnhälsovård and factors affecting its use. The study was a comprehensive Web survey of 2376 child healthcare nurses in Sweden answered by 1309. Statistical processing was performed using descriptive and analytical methods. Rikshandboken i Barnhälsovård was widely used by the respondents, but regional differences and number of years in the profession affected the use. Almost all nurses were satisfied with the usability, content, and design and felt that a national guide for child healthcare is important. This indicates that an established Web-based national guide is an appropriate setting when a new national program is implemented. In order to achieve an equal and equitable child healthcare, it is essential that all nurses use the national guide to provide evidence-based practice. The value of main child healthcare units as regional facilitators in the innovation process of Rikshandboken i Barnhälsovård should not be underestimated.