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EBP Briefs: An Introduction, Volumes 1 and 2

Dr. Laura Justice

I am pleased to introduce an exciting and innovative venture supported by AGS Publishing, now part of Pearson Assessments: EBP Briefs. EBP Briefs come at an exciting time in our profession: As speech-language pathologists are well aware, there is currently a strong emphasis on the need to critically examine the best available current scientific evidence and integrate this evidence with other types of data to arrive at the best solutions to clinical questions. In this regard, clinical professionals are asked to bridge the "research to practice gap" by conducting reviews of the empirical literature in search of objective answers to questions faced in the field; subsequent to such review, they are expected to incorporate the resultant empirical evidence into their decision-making frameworks. This movement in speech-language pathology is not occurring in a vacuum; rather, it reflects a more general paradigm shift in the medical, allied health, and educational disciplines in which professionals are asked to consult the scientific evidence in their everyday decision-making, to ensure that theory and craft are balanced with data and evidence.

Evidence-based practice (EBP) is the term that describes the process clinical professionals go through as they consult various types of information to answer a clinical question. In the process of reviewing relevant information sources, the scientific literature is but one source consulted, but the tenets of EBP position this literature to be just as relevant as other information sources that are typically consulted (e.g., clinical experience, theoretical perspective). The clinician engaged in the process of EBP arrives at an answer to a clinical question that integrates information from an array of inputs, to include not only the scientific literature but also examination of client preferences, institutional norms and policies, and his/her theoretical knowledge and clinical experiences.

For clinicians to engage in the EBP process, they must have access to not only high-quality research studies relevant to the clinical questions they ask, but also to systematic reviews of particular bodies of evidence that attempt to find objective answers to commonly-asked questions. EBP Briefs is designed to support evidence-minded professionals by identifying and answering clinically-relevant questions using current standards of evidence- based practice, with a particular focus on examining evidence relevant to pressing questions in school-based practice. Each brief considers a specific question, evaluates the available scientific evidence relevant to this question, and makes recommendations for integrating this scientific evidence into clinical decision-making.

EBP Briefs will be published in electronic format on a quarterly basis, and in a hard-copy journal format annually. Forthcoming briefs to look forward to in this 2006 inaugural volume include examinations of approaches used to address children’s needs in social communication, vocabulary, fluency, and phonology.

In planning for our second volume in 2007, I invite professionals to contact us to identify specific questions they encounter in clinical practice which we ought to systematically explore in EBP Briefs.

Laura Justice, Editor

Index of EBP Briefs