What is Evidence-Based Practice (EBP)?
"Placing the client's benefits first, evidence-based practitioners adopt a process of lifelong learning that involves continually posing specific questions of direct practical importance to clients, searching objectively and efficiently for the current best evidence relative to each question, and taking appropriate action guided by evidence." (Gibbs, 2003)
"...the conscientious, explicit and judicious use of current best evidence in making decisions about the care of the individual patient. It means integrating individual clinical expertise with the best available external clinical evidence from systematic research." (Sackett et al, 1996)
EBP Scholarship
Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing and Healthcare by
The go-to guide to evidence-based practice in nursing for more than a decade; Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing & Healthcare: A Guide to Best Practice; 5th Edition, presents the latest perspectives on research-backed nursing practice in an engaging, user-friendly approach that has made this the bestselling resource of its kind. AJN award-winning authors Bernadette Melnyk and Ellen Fineout-Overholt combine straightforward, conversational storytelling, inspiring quotes, and engaging case studies to make evidence-based practice accessible for students at any level of familiarity. With real-world examples and meaningful strategies in every chapter, this revised and reimagined 5th Edition gives students the confidence to meet today's clinical challenges and ensure the most effective patient outcomes for years to come. New to this edition: NEW! Reimagined coverage and a new chapter on applying implementation science to clinical practice settings; familiarize students with the latest evidence and emerging implementation and evaluation tools. UPDATED! Content throughout; empowers you to more effectively teach evidence-based practice principles in academic and clinical settings. UPDATED! Making EPB Real; case studies reinforce clinical application through real-world examples.
ISBN: 9781975185725Publication Date: 2023-01-10
- Evidence-Based NursingPublished quarterly, this journal selects "from the health related literature research studies and reviews that report important advances relevant to best nursing practice. The clinical relevance and rigour of the studies is assessed to identify research that is relevant to nursing."
- AHRQ's Communication and Dissemination Strategies To Facilitate the Use of Health-Related EvidenceThis review examines "how to best communicate and disseminate evidence, including uncertain evidence, to inform health care decisions."
- AHRQ's Impact Case StudiesHighlights cases that demonstrate how organizations have used AHRQ's evidence-based resources to "improve the quality, safety, effectiveness, and efficiency of health care."
- AHRQ's State Snapshots / National Healthcare Quality and Disparities ReportsThe Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s (AHRQ) State Snapshots highlight how states are progressing with overall quality of health care and patient safety improvements. Includes charts on the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement in each State and the District of Columbia. AHRQ’s State Snapshots allows users to analyze data from their State in various ways, including types and settings of care, select clinical conditions, insurance status, access to care, and priority populations.
- Institute of Medicine's Roundtable on Evidence-Based MedicineThis e-book section is a part of the Leadership Commitments to Improve Value in Health Care - Finding Common Ground Workshop Summary from 2009.
Evidence-Based Practice Resources
- Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)AHRQ's mission is "to improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care for all Americans. The Agency fulfills this mission by conducting health care services research which examines how people get access to health care, how much care costs, and what happens as a result of the care they receive." Look in particular at the EPC Evidence Based Reports
- American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Magnet Recognition ProgramRecognizes "organizations worldwide where nursing leaders successfully align their nursing strategic goals to improve the organization’s patient outcomes."
- Evidence AidEvidence Aid is not-for-profit UK organization dedicated to providing evidence for responding to disasters and emergencies.
- U.S. Preventive Services Task Force"Conducts scientific evidence reviews of a broad range of clinical preventive health care services (such as screening, counseling, and preventive medications) and develops recommendations for primary care clinicians and health systems."
- American College of Physicians Clinical Practice Guidelines"ACP's goal is to provide clinicians with recommendations based on the best available evidence; to inform clinicians of when there is no evidence; and finally, to help clinicians deliver the best health care possible."
- Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation (AGREE II)An instrument that evaluates the process of practice guideline development and the quality of reporting.
- CURRENT Practice Guidelines in Inpatient Medicine 2018–2019Designed to help healthcare professionals quickly locate "the guidelines surrounding initial assessment, acute management, and subsequent care for conditions commonly encountered in the hospital setting." A part of AccessMedicine's Quick Reference resources.
- CURRENT Practice Guidelines in Primary Care 2024"Concise summaries of the latest disease-screening, prevention, and management guidelines." A part of AccessMedicine's Quick Reference resources.
- ECRI Guidelines TrustAlternate resource for the former National Guideline Clearinghouse. "This centralized repository includes evidence-based guidance developed by nationally- and internationally-recognized medical organizations and medical specialty societies." Free to use, but registration is required.
- Guideline CentralGuideline Central is dedicated to providing healthcare professionals with evidence-based clinical decision-support tools that are current, practical, and easily accessible. We partner with over thirty-five medical societies and government agencies to provide quick-reference tools that physicians (healthcare providers) can rely on for credible guidance in the management of a medical condition.
- National Institute for Health and Clinical Guidance (NICE)British clinical guidelines.
- SIGNEvidence based clinical practice guidelines developed by the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) for the National Health Service (NHS) in Scotland.
- SQUIRE 2.0 GuidelinesProvide a framework to help authors report new knowledge about quality improvement in healthcare.
- VA/DoD Clinical Practice GuidelinesProvided by the Veterans Affairs/Dept. of Defense Evidence-Based Practice Guideline Work Group.
- Evidence-Based Practice Improvement: Merging Evidence-Based Practice and Quality Improvement (2025). Levin and LauderEffective Fall 2024, the DNP program has selected the Evidence-based Practice Improvement Plus Model (Levin & Lauder, 2025) as the framework for designing, implementing, evaluating, and disseminating the DNP Scholarly Project (see Figure 2). The EBPI+ model merges the initial four steps of the evidence-based practice (EBP) process with quality improvement (QI) methods for project implementation and evaluation. The model concludes with the dissemination of project results. Additional aspects of the model include principles critical for project success that include:
- - Mentoring
- Organizational commitment
- Stakeholder engagement
- Assessment of organizational context
- Need for project sustainability
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- Evidence-Based Practice in Action, Second Edition: Comprehensive Strategies, Tools, and Tips from University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics"Evidence-Based Practice in Action, Second Edition, is a time-tested, application-oriented EBP resource of The Iowa Model Revised: Evidence-Based Practice to Promote Excellence in Health Care. This book offers a proven, detailed plan to help nurses and healthcare professionals promote and achieve EBP adoption and implementation."
- The Iowa Model Revised: Evidence-Based Practice to Promote Excellence in Health Care"The Iowa Model guides clinical decision-making and EBP process from both the clinician and systems perspectives." Must request permission to use and/or reproduce this model from the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.
- Johns Hopkins Nursing Evidence-Based Practice ModelProvided by Johns Hopkins Medicine. This model is designed to help practicing nurses to incorporate the latest research findings and best practices into patient care.
- CONSORT Statement"CONSORT stands for Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials." Includes a 25-item checklist and a flow diagram to assist with the reporting of randomized trials.
- Evidence Evaluation Tools & Resources (LEGEND)Provided by the James M. Anderson Center for Health Systems Excellence at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center.
- GRADE Working GroupGRADE stands for the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation. This working group had developed an approach used to rate the "quality (or certainty) of evidence and strength of recommendations."
- Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) Evidence-Based Care Bundles"IHI developed the concept of “bundles” to help health care providers more reliably deliver the best possible care for patients undergoing particular treatments with inherent risks. A bundle is a structured way of improving the processes of care and patient outcomes: a small, straightforward set of evidence-based practices — generally three to five — that, when performed collectively and reliably, have been proven to improve patient outcomes."
- JAMAevidence"Fundamental tools for understanding and applying the medical literature and making clinical diagnoses." Access limited to free resources only.
- PRISMA Statement"PRISMA stands for Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses." Includes a 27-item checklist and flow diagram that are designed to "help authors improve the reporting of systematic reviews and meta-analyses."
- Strength-of-Recommendation Taxonomy (SORT)The American Academy of Family Physicians created SORT to "label key recommendations in clinical review articles." SORT includes three grades (A-C) and are "assigned on the basis of the quality and consistency of available evidence."