Teaching Evidence-Based Practice: Overcoming Barriers

Based on their experience with implementing a course in evidence-based practice for a psychiatry residency program, the authors identify barriers that must be overcome in teaching this approach to practice. Barriers to evidence-based teaching include students’ concern that an emphasis on research evidence may ignore the human context of mental health problems, students’ perception of inconsistency between messages delivered by an evidence-based program and by clinical supervisors, and students’ sense of intimidation by the breadth of material associated with research appraisal. Recommended responses involve an emphasis upon the balance between research knowledge and clinical intuition, explicit discussion of how to manage discrepant approaches to practice in academic and clinical settings, and careful delineation of realistic learning goals with regard to research design and statistical methodology. [Brief Treatment and Crisis Intervention 4:271–275 (2004)]