Developing Evidence-Based Practice
Evidence-based practice (EBP) supports the provision of safe, quality, and equitable care. It is an approach to solve clinical problems by incorporating quality empirical evidence, preferences and values of patients, and the expertise of clinicians. The Institute of Medicine published two influential quality-related reports that emphasized the significance of the evidence-based practice (Stevens, 2013). The report includes the need to educate healthcare professionals to use evidence-based approaches in practice. Various strategies are useful in developing evidence-based practices that are inclusive of all sociodemographic groups.
Useful Strategies in the Development of Evidence-Based Practice
One of the strategies that can be used in developing EBP targeting sociodemographic groups is the creation of a learning setting and training healthcare providers. The training should use various tools such as EBP journal clubs to educate and train health care providers regarding the need to provide effective care to patients from different sociodemographic populations (Black, Balneaves, Garossino, Puyat, & Qian, 2015). The training program should involve EBP experts and faculty members to inform the adoption of EBP.
Another important strategy in supporting EBP is research consultation. The process involves discussion and collaboration between various healthcare professionals who share information and knowledge on how to improve the care provided to different patient groups. Interaction between clinicians and research centers to improve healthcare practice should also be initiated. Health care organizations should provide necessary conditions for providers to access resources to advance research and implementation of results in practice (Black, Balneaves, Garossino, Puyat, & Qian, 2015). They should also encourage and support the staffs interested in evidence-based practice, identify potential hindrances to implementation, and implement critical strategies to overcome the hindrances.
Discussion groups are other important strategies that can be used in developing EBP in practice. The discussions should involve inter-professional and inter-wards teams to ensure that patients from different social, cultural, and demographic groups can access safe and quality care. The process will also promote a culture of evidence-based decision-making in clinical practice. Health care providers should regularly monitor and evaluate EBP in the organization to ensure that they have enough evidence to improve the care provided to diverse populations (Horntvedt, Nordsteien, Fermann, & Severinsson, 2018). The strategy is critical because it enables the implementation of changes informed by evidence. It supports the continued improvement of health care services.
Target Groups EBP
Various patient populations are marginalized in healthcare and should be supported to increase their access to health services for quality outcomes. One of such groups in the health care system are people with special needs who are isolated from the general population and have limited access to health care services (Garrett, 2019). These people are stigmatized, especially if they belong to socially or culturally marginalized populations. Privacy and confidentiality challenges also affect their ability to seek adequate care. They remain silent and suffer major health problems due to privacy and confidentiality issues. Therefore, this is a special group to target with intervention to support evidence-based inclusive care.
Conclusion
The healthcare system in the United States faces serious challenges due to the marginalization of some individuals and groups who have limited access to health care services. Therefore, using the discussed strategies to develop EBP in health care organizations can play an important role in bridging the current gaps in care. The interventions are necessary to improve access to care for marginalized populations such as people with special needs.