History

• Evidence-based practice gained momentum during the 1990s and mainly focused on the medical profession. Since that time other professions have adopted the practice, notably education and psychology.
  
  

Features

• Evidence-based practice combines a number of features: the most recent research, the practitioners' clinical experience and knowledge and the patient's desires for treatment outcomes.
  
  

Considerations

• Evidence-based practice considers the research available. Treatments and clinical decisions are weighed equally combined with the patient's requests.
  
  

Benefits

• The practice of evidence-based medicine benefits patients because it utilizes the most current knowledge and research for the best outcomes and applies that knowledge to individual patients, without relying solely on clinical judgment. It is an integrated approach.
  
  

Significance

• Evidence-based practice requires the practitioner to always be learning to stay current with new developments in her field. Remaining current with the newest developments and practices benefits the patient.