Aims This study aimed to investigate the influence of barriers to the use of research results in the practice of nurses on patient safety perception. Background The use of research results in clinical practice promotes safe care, increases quality and reduces the possibility of adverse events. Design This is a cross‐sectional study. Methods The sample consisted of 207 nurses from three public university hospitals in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil from March 2017 to November 2018. They answered a questionnaire with professional characteristics, The Barriers Scale and Safety Attitudes Questionnaire. Descriptive analysis, Student's t test, Pearson correlation and multiple linear regression were used for data analysis. Results The findings showed most nurses had unfavourable competencies for implementing research results in practice. As barrier scores for the use of research results in practice increase, safety climate scores decrease. Taking a training course on the use of research results in clinical practice and organization characteristics, limitations of the setting were statistically significant, constituting factors that influence the perception of the safety climate. Conclusion Investments in education are needed for health professionals to be aware of evidence‐based practice and how to use evidence to impact decision‐making outcomes, strengthening safety outcomes in health services.