Define evidence-based practice in PT and outline the five steps used to apply it.

• A. Integrating best research, clinical expertise, and patient values; steps: ask, acquire, appraise, apply, assess.
• B. It is the use of clinical judgment alone to guide care.
• C. It relies only on randomized controlled trials.
• D. It disregards patient preferences.

Answer: (B)

Evidence-based practice in physical therapy means making decisions by blending the best available research evidence with your own clinical expertise and the patient’s values and circumstances. This ensures care is scientifically grounded while also being practical and tailored to the individual.

To apply it, follow five steps: formulate a focused clinical question using a framework like PICOT (Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome, Time); search for the best available evidence to answer that question; critically appraise the quality and relevance of what you find; apply the findings to the patient’s care in the context of your clinical judgment and the patient’s preferences; and finally assess the outcomes to see whether the approach is effective and what to adjust next.

For example, if a patient with knee osteoarthritis asks about the best approach to improve function, you would look for high-quality studies on relevant interventions, evaluate how applicable the results are to this patient, discuss options with the patient based on both evidence and preferences, implement the chosen plan, and monitor progress to inform future decisions.