InDrug Information Vs. Evidence-Based Medicine

Practising Evidence-Based Medicine “EBM” is essential in today’s healthcare environment.

• In short, the model of care offers clinicians a way to achieve the Triple Aim’s Objectives,
• Firstly, these Objectives are improved quality, patient satisfaction, and reduced costs. 
• Secondly, health care is growing awareness that a significant time lag occurs in getting research information into practice.
• Thirdly, several examples of treatments that have been well studied and proven effective that are substantially underutilised, and interventions that have been proven ineffective or harmful continue to be provided.
• One of the goals of developing and implementing evidence-based clinical practice guidelines is to help speed up the process of getting evidence into practice.
• In addition, evidence-based medicine is not just about using evidence to design treatment plans; It also encourages a dialogue between patients and providers, so patients can share in the decision-making and make known values and preferences.
• Together, the patient and provider can determine an appropriate course of action.
• Additionally, the benefit of this approach is that providers listen to patient concerns and consider them to determine the appropriate treatment plan.
• Instead of routinely reviewing the contents of dozens of journals for exciting articles, EBM suggests that you target your reading to issues related to specific patient problems.
• Meanwhile, developing clinical questions and then searching current databases may be a more productive way of keeping current with the literature.
• To sum up, Evidence-Based Medicine “converts the abstract exercise of reading and appraising the literature into the pragmatic process of using the literature to benefit individual patients while simultaneously expanding the clinician’s knowledge base.”

• Evidence-Based Medicine (EBM) is a philosophy of practice and an approach to decision-making in the clinical care of patients.
• David Sackett – a medical doctor and a pioneer in EBM – has defined EBM as the “conscientious, explicit.
• Additionally, the judicious use of current best evidence in making decisions about the care of individual patients”. 

Evolution of Evidence-Based Medicine:

• Although Evidence is needed daily, physicians usually don’t get it. Lack of time, information overload, and sometimes outdated textbooks may be due to lack of time.

EBM has passed through different stages:

• In short, increasing realisation among clinicians that years of experience unaccompanied by updating knowledge can result in declining clinical performance.

• patients have access to the same literature as the clinician through numerous sources.

• the need for valid information about a diagnosis, therapy, prognosis and prevention in this era of consumer activism.

Evidence-Based Medicine is a Process – 5 step approach to practising EBM

• Evidence-Based Medicine – as mentioned before – is a lifelong, problem-based learning process.
• EBM asks questions, finds and appraises the relevant data, and takes advantage of that information for everyday clinical practice.

This process involves five linked activities:

• Framing information needs into good, clearly focused answerable clinical questions – via the PICO model.
• Efficiently tracking down the best evidence with which to answer the question.
• Critically appraising the evidence or the literature for validity and clinical usefulness & evaluate for applicability of the evidence.
• Applying the results in clinical practice.
• Evaluating the performance of the evidence in clinical application & follow-up on any areas for improvements.

Evidence-based medicine is not “cookbook” medicine

• Because it requires a bottom-up approach that integrates the best external evidence with individual clinical expertise and patients’ choices.