Evidence-based practice: toward optimizing clinical outcomes

Health care is witnessing an explosion of fundamental, clinical and translational research evidence. The emerging paradigm of evidence-based health care rests on the judicious integration of the patient needs/wants, the provider's expertise, and the best available research evidence in the treatment plan. The purpose of this book is to discuss the promise and the limitations of incorporating the best available evidence in clinical practice. It seeks to characterize and define how best available research evidence can be used in clinical practice and to what respect it applies to current public health issues.