Instruments to assess Evidence-Based Practice among healthcare professionals: a systematic review

Abstract

The study makes it possible to select the most appropriate instruments to evaluate the use of Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) among health professionals. The objective of this study was to assess the measurement properties, summarize and describe the instruments that evaluate the use of EBP in health professionals, currently available through the update of the systematic review. The study was conducted and reported according to recommendations of the PRISMA checklist. A systematic search was conducted in the databases: PubMed, Embase, CINAHL and ERIC. In addition, three groups of search terms: EBP terms; evaluation; cross-cultural adaptation and measurement proprieties. They included studies that showed assessment tools of EBP in healthcare workers in general publication of full-text scientific articles, which tested the measurement properties and publication of an article in English. Searches included published studies from 2006 until July 2020. Evaluation of the methodological quality of the studies was conducted according to the COSMIN initiative. 92 studies were included. Forty new instruments have been identified to assess EBP. From these, most were developed for nursing professionals and physiotherapists. More than 48% of studies have American and Australian English as their native language. Only 28% of the studies included students in the samples. Reliability was considered appropriate (sufficient) in 76% of the instruments. The COSMIN checklist classified 7 (seven) instruments as being suitable for use in the target audience. However, Fresno Test remains the most appropriate instrument for assessing the use of EBP in healthcare professionals. 40 new instruments that assess EBP have been identified. Most are consistent and reliable for measuring the use of EBP in healthcare professionals. The Fresno Test, in a list of seven reliable and valid instruments for analysis, remains the most used and the one that most assesses the domains of EBP.