Challenges and strategies in getting evidence-based practice into primary health care--what role the information professional?

Recent years have seen a drive towards evidence-based practice in health care, whereby decisions are made based on the best available evidence from research. Concerning the drive towards a primary care-led NHS, this article examines the particular features of primary care, with reference to recent literature, which may mean that an evidence-based approach is more difficult to achieve than it is in secondary care. Initiatives underway that attempt to address some of these difficulties are highlighted, and the future role of the information professional in achieving the adaptation of evidence-based practice in primary health care is considered. This article has been developed from a presentation given at Under One Umbrella 4, UMIST, on 29 June 1997.