Surgical Technology

Evidence-Based Medicine
Evidence-based medicine is a systematic process of appraising and using current research findings. It is a step-by-step process that includes formulating a clear clinical question of patient needs, searching the current literature, evaluating the literature and deciding which studies are valid and useful to the patient, applying the findings to the patient's care, and then evaluating the outcome.

Systematic Review
A systematic review focuses on a single question and tries to identify, appraise, select and synthesize all high-quality research evidence relevant to that question. It often uses the same techniques as the meta-analysis to combine valid research studies. The seven steps for preparing a systematic review as outlined by the Cochrane Handbook are: formulating the problem, locating & selecting studies, critical appraisal of the studies, collecting data, analyzing & presenting results, interpreting the results, improving & updating the systematic review.

Find other definitions from University of North Texas Health Science Center Library.

Reviews from Cochrane Reviews and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Policy are considered the best and most reliable, but they can also be retrieved from the following databases or websites: