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Evidence Based Practice[edit | edit source]

What is Evidence-Based Practice?[edit | edit source]

Evidence based practice (EBP) “requires the integration of the best research evidence with our clinical expertise and our patient’s unique values and circumstances” (Straus, Richardson, Glasziou, & Haynes, 2005, p. 1). This is contrary to methods where decisions are made solely on the fact that it has been done in the past. An evidence-based approach encourages you to examine the facts from reliable research before moving forward. It allows the clinician to base decisions on proof.

In health care fields, the term is often also referred to as evidence-based medicine (EBM). Both EBP and EBM involves “formulating clinical questions, finding evidence in the medical literature that addresses the questions, critically appraising the evidence, and applying the evidence to specific patients” (Reiser, 2017, p. 170).

Why is Evidence-Based Practice a Current Trend?[edit | edit source]

Evidence-based practice (EBP) is quickly becoming the standard in various health care fields. It is important for students to understand what EBP is, why it is important, and how to apply it in real-world situations. Applying this method to a curriculum helps students to become better at consulting current information sources with the purpose of keeping current in actual practice (Reiser, 2017).

Thanks to advances in technology, medical clinicians now have access to a wealth of information from recent research studies. The research field has made incredible discoveries in the past few decades that have illuminated new understandings in medical knowledge. Most importantly, students can now access databases more easily than in the past. EBP is all about evaluating the current information. The first step in EBP is becoming familiar with the best sources for the latest research. With a strong understanding of research, one can engage in EBP by utilizing various technologies, especially medical databases, to stay current.

Implementation of Evidence-Based Practice in Educational Settings[edit | edit source]

It is important for educational technology leaders to promote the use of evidence-based practice as a form of problem-based learning (PBL). According to Davis (2009), “PBL, developed in the field of medicine, is an instructional method in which carefully crafted open-ended problems are introduced at the beginning of the instructional cycle and are used to provide the context and motivation for the learning that follows” (p. 217). Instead of teaching information, the students engage in self-directed learning through analyzing real-world problems (Davis, 2009). Instructors need to be flexible and must be able to guide the students through the facts, laws, principles, theories, etc. that are pertinent to the problem (Davis, 2009).

There are three modes of teaching EBP as suggested by Straus, Richardson, Glasziou, & Haynes (2005, p. 200):

(1) Role-Modeling EBP:

Learners see evidence as part of good patient care.
Teaching by example: “actions speak louder than words”.
Learners see us use judgement in integrating evidence into decisions.

(2) Teaching Clinical Medicine with Evidence:

Learners see evidence as part of good clinical learning.
Teaching by weaving: evidence is taught along with other knowledge.
Learners see us use judgement in integrating evidence with other knowledge.

(3) Teaching Specific EBP Skills:

Learners learn how to understand evidence and use it wisely.
Teaching by coaching: learners get explicitly coached as they develop.
Learners see us use judgement as we carry out the five steps with them (asking, searching, appraising, applying, and evaluating).

Whichever mode is use, “it is important that higher institutions always strive for the most effective approach to teaching students the knowledge and skills required for EBP, so that commencing clinical practice they can confidently incorporate research evidence into their clinical decision-making” (Kyriakoulis, et. al., 2016, p. 34).

Key Issues Surrounding Evidence-Based Practice[edit | edit source]

Individual professionals need to be informed, motivated and perhaps trained to incorporate the latest evidence into their daily work. The largest barrier to EBP, according to Baig, Sayedalamin, Almouteri, Algarni, and Allam (2016), is that “knowledge and practice are not up to the mark” (p. 53). The transfer of evidence into practice is often restricted. This is often due to the business of practices, lack of resources, and/or lack of time to search and read the literature (Baig, Sayedalamin, Almouteri, Algarni, & Allam, 2016). Other barriers exist to include: individual characteristics, organizational structure, the nature of research information, and the healthcare environment (Malik, McKenna, & Plummer, 2016).

Ultimately, professionals need to put in the extra effort to decrease the widening gap between best practice and actual clinical care. Malik, McKenna, and Plummer (2016) note that a recurrent theme in the literature is that “EBP is perceived as a huge task” and practitioners “are reluctant to embrace it when there is lack of support from the organization or available mentoring” (p. 545).

Related Research[edit | edit source]

References:

Davis, B. G. (2009). Tools for teaching. Second ed. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-bass.

Baig, M., Sayedalamin, Z., Almouteri, O., Algarni, M., & Allam, H. (2016). Perceptions, perceived barriers and practices of physicians towards evidence-based medicine. Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences, 32(1), 49–54. https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.321.8841

Kyriakoulis, K., Patelarou, A., Laliotis, A., Wan, A. C., Matalliotakis, M., Tsiou, C., & Patelarou, E. (2016). Educational strategies for teaching evidence-based practice to undergraduate health students: systematic review. Journal of Educational Evaluation for Health Professions, 13, 34. https://doi.org/10.3352/jeehp.2016.13.34

Malik, G., McKenna, L., & Plummer, V. (2016). Facilitators and barriers to evidence-based practice: perceptions of nurse educators, clinical coaches and nurse specialists from a descriptive study. Contemporary Nurse, 52(5), 544–554. https://doi.org/10.1080/10376178.2016.1188017

Reiser, R. A., & Dempsey, J. V. (2017). Trends and issues in instructional design and technology. New York: Pearson.

Straus, S. E., Richardson, W. S., Glasziou, P., & Haynes, R. B. (2005). Evidence-based medicine: How to practice and teach EBM. Third ed. New York, NY: Elsevier.

VanLunen, B. L., Hankemeier, D. A., Welch, C.E. (2015). Evidence-guided practice: A framework for clinical decision making in athletic training. Thorofare, NJ: Slack.