What is Evidence Based Practice (EBP)? How is EBP affecting Adaptive Equipment?
People in the special needs community often contend with more than their fair share of medical appointments and therapy sessions. We live in a time when these services are evolving and changing faster than they ever have before. This is offering all of us the benefits of many new ways of working with physical challenges and other limitations. One term that is frequently used among health care professionals as they sort through new ways of approaching age old problems is Evidence -Based Practice.
In the article, Evidence-Based Practice: What is EBP? Evidenced-Based Practice (EBP) is defined as a process of “integrating the best available research evidence with clinical expertise and the patient’s unique values and circumstances” (Straus, Glasziou, Richardson, & Haynes, 2011).
EBP is based on rigorous scientific research and is an explicit protocol that includes six characteristics of quality care:
- Patient centered
- Scientifically based
- Population outcomes based
- Refined through quality improvement and benchmarking
- Individualized to each patient
- Compatible with system policies and resources
Evidenced Based Practice differs from Best Practice which is a generally accepted method or technique that has proven itself over time and tends to produce superior results. Best practices are often driven by clinical wisdom and consensus approaches and do not necessarily include systematic use of quality research evidence. These practices typically don't undergo the same scientific evaluation as EBP and are often slower to be adopted. The History of Evidence Based Practice had its start in the 1800’s. Florence Nightingale has been recognized as a pioneer in introducing the concept of improving patient outcomes through sound evidence in the discipline of nursing. The movement picked up considerable momentum the 1970s and 80s. Today, with the ability to share information and research results easily, Evidence Based Practice has become the gold standard.
EBP is affecting all areas of medical care including Durable Medical Equipment (DME). As research drives changes to patient care in medicine, nursing and ancillary services, equipment used to assist patients also changes at an accelerated rate. Did you know that some of the assistive devices that we take for granted, for example the walker, only started to appear in the US in the early 1950’s and the first walker to resemble modern walkers was patented in the US in 1970’s? Since that time, countless adaptions have been made to the basic walker and people are benefiting greatly.
Here at Adaptivemall.com we are committed to helping the special needs community and caregivers have a deeper understanding of why durable medical equipment is changing. In the new category of articles TRENDING: Evidence Based Changes to Durable Medical Equipment we will do just that. So please stay tuned!
