Evidence-based Perfusion Practice: Itʼs not all about the pump

Introduction: In March of 2001, the Institute of Medicine report, Crossing the Quality Chasm, exposed the gap in the US healthcare system, pointing out the chasm between the way healthcare “is” and the way that healthcare “should be.” The authors reported that scientific knowledge about the best care is not applied systematically or expeditiously to clinical practice. It takes an average of 17 years for new knowledge generated by randomized controlled trials to be incorporated into clinical practices and even then application is highly uneven.” This sobering report describes how one nation’s healthcare system, faced with rapid changes, has fallen short in its ability to translate knowledge into practice and apply new technology safely and appropriately. “We have an extraordinary capacity to deliver the best care in the world, but we repeatedly fail to translate knowledge and capacity into clinical practice.” These findings presents those of us here today with a moral imperative to address this gap problem.