S4) Evidence-based Practice Flashcards

1
Q

What is the argument for evidence-based healthcare?

A

Health service delivery should be based on best available evidence which emerges from findings of rigorously conducted research

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2
Q

Which two factors should the evidence for healthcare consist of?

A
  • Effectiveness (of drugs, practices, interventions)

- Cost-effectiveness (in a system with finite resources where should money be spent to gain the maximum utility?)

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3
Q

Identify 4 factors which influence healthcare practices

A
  • Professional opinion
  • Clinical fashion
  • Historical practice and precedent
  • Organisational and social culture
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4
Q

What is evidence based practice?

A

Evidence-based practice involves the integration of individual clinical expertise with the best available external clinical evidence from systematic research

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5
Q

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses have become very important in informing evidence base.

Why are they needed?

A
  • Traditional literature reviews may be biased and subjective
  • Quality of studies reviewed variable and sometimes poor
  • Help address clinical uncertainty
  • Highlight gaps in research/poor quality research
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6
Q

Provide 4 reasons as to why systematic reviews are useful to clinicians

A
  • Offer quality control and increased certainty
  • Offer authoritative, generalisable and up-to-date conclusions
  • Reduce delay between research discoveries and implementation

- Help to prevent biased decisions being made

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7
Q

What are the 3 practical criticisms of the evidence-based practice movement?

A
  • An impossible task to create and maintain systematic reviews across all specialities

- Challenging and expensive to disseminate and implement findings

​- Requires ‘good faith’ on the part of pharmaceutical companies

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8
Q

What are the 3 philosophical criticisms of evidence-based practice?

A
  • ‘Does not align with most doctors’ modes of reasoning
  • Aggregate, population-level outcomes don’t mean that an intervention will work for an individual
  • Professional responsibility/autonomy
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