Vicki Lowe, Ph.D., RN, a JHHCMC nurse scientist supporting nursing research and evidence-based practice, knows that research can be an overwhelming topic. She is on a mission to change that.  

After 40 years as a clinical lactation nurse, Vicki Lowe was ready to take a step back from the bedside to pursue her passion for teaching. She had been an instructor at community colleges and was an avid mentor, but she needed her Ph.D. to teach at a university level. As she was finishing her program, something unexpected happened.

She became fascinated by the role of teaching research to clinical nurses in the hospital setting. “As a nurse, research can be a little intimidating,” says Vicki. “You learn it academically, so you have the knowledge, but many people struggle to apply it. This merger between practice and teaching became very appealing to me. Nursing inquiry classes aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s so important for nurses to be able to navigate a research environment and really know that what they are doing is best practice.” 

Nursing inquiry is a package term that refers to research, evidence-based practice and quality improvement. It is an important part of driving innovation and improvement in a hospital-based setting. As the very first JHHCMC nurse scientist supporting nursing and evidence-based research, Vicki is advancing the hospital’s dedication to discovering and implementing best practices in nursing.  

Collaboration is key when it comes to research. Vicki chairs the Howard County Nursing Inquiry Council, which represents the hospital and reports to the National Center for Nursing Inquiry. JHHCMC is also involved in ongoing research projects through Johns Hopkins Medicine. One study, led by the Johns Hopkins Clinical Research Network, looks at end-of-life decision-making among Korean American patients and families to evaluate whether community needs are being met. Another, led by the Center for Nursing Inquiry, explores the knowledge, implementation and value of evidence-based practices in hospitals.  

“It's really great to be part of these bigger projects,” says Vicki. “But what I think is going to be beautiful about this nurse scientist role is it will allow somebody to say, ‘Hey, it matters to me what happens at Howard County. What are the local issues?’” In her new position, Vicki will be able to help guide nurses as they discover and investigate new solutions to serve the Howard County community.  

For many nurses, the idea of doing research is scary and overwhelming. Vicki believes that it doesn’t have to be. “The biggest challenge and the biggest opportunity that I’m really excited about is the idea of simplifying the process,” she says. “In school, we tend to focus on really dense, heavy research, but in reality, we do research every day. I want to help demystify evidence-based research – the process is something that we do all the time, everywhere in our world. 

“For example, if you’re trying to decide where to get your hair done, you read reviews, compare and contrast your options and form a conclusion. You evaluate your sources and rely on evidence that is solid. You don’t take recommendations from bad sources because you don’t want to end up with a bad haircut. Likewise, you shouldn’t take poorly researched evidence and build the foundation of your nursing practice on it. You can strengthen flimsy walls, but if the foundation isn’t solid, there is nothing you can do to strengthen it besides starting over.” 

Vicki believes that having more support at a local level will help aspiring nurse researchers dip their toes into the process. In 2023, our local Nursing Inquiry Committee had the opportunity to participate in an evidence-based practice intensive (EBP-I) course led by the Center for Nursing Inquiry. “This immersive learning project provided valuable learning experience for our group, while examining the evidence surrounding workplace violence against health care workers,” says Vicki. “Ultimately, this project revealed gaps in the evidence, resulting in a recommendation for further research on the topic. This is just one example of the system-side support that allows us to form and grow local leaders in nursing inquiry.” 

Looking to the future, Vicki sees a robust culture of nursing research at JHHCMC. This new role will help the medical center with the infrastructure support needed to implement and promote these kinds of projects. “First, it allows dedicated time for this type of work, so that full-time nurses don’t need to squeeze it in between patient care,” says Vicki. “Second, it formally designates a leader for the projects and a line of succession, so nothing gets lost in role changes.” Vicki also hopes to inspire more nurses to use non-clinical time for research and recruit a diverse group of nurses to spearhead research initiatives as principal investigators. 

Beyond that, she wants nurses across the hospital to feel empowered and capable of implementing these projects. “I like to say that the nurses are the content experts, and we’re the process experts,” says Vicki. “Let’s make a team so that the brilliant ideas that nurses have can be tested and we can be sure what we’re doing reflects best practice.