Will the Real Evidence-Based Practice Please Stand Up? Teaching the Process of Evidence-Based Practice to the Helping Professions

‘‘Evidence-based practice’’ (EBP) is in danger of becoming a catchphrase for anything that is done with clients that can somehow be linked to an empirical study, regardless of the study’s quality, competing evidence, or consideration of clients’ needs. The EBP process, on the other hand, involves a well-built practice question, an efficient search for best evidence, a critical appraisal of that evidence, and action based on the interchange between client preferences, practice experience, and the best evidence. This article defines elements in the EBP process through examples taken from our own multidisciplinary work with students in two separate graduate and undergraduate programs. We also discuss practical concerns that have arisen while teaching EBP and explore a number of trends in discipline-specific databases. [Brief Treatment and Crisis Intervention 4:137–153 (2004)]