National Association of Social Workers

Evidence-Based Practice Moves Ahead

Easier Access to Data Boosts Classroom Interest

EBP plays a key role in social work mental health care education, training and treatment.

By Paul R. Pace, News Staff

Illustration: John Michael Yanson

The growth of using evidence-based practice (EBP) in the classroom and in the field for those who teach and work in mental health care has been highlighted in a detailed report.

Social work educators agree that EBP will continue to play a key role in social work mental health care education, training and treatment.

The report, "Partnerships to Integrate Evidence-Based Mental Health Practices into Social Work Education and Research," was drafted by the Institute for the Advancement of Social Work Research (IASWR). It is based on presentations and discussions at a symposium in 2007 hosted by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). The EBP initiative is sponsored by NIMH's Division of Services and Intervention Research, the Office of Constituency Relations and Public Liaison and the Office of Special Populations.

While EBP in mental health education has been on the minds of some university faculty for years, the IASWR report noted that the practice of using EBP in the classroom and field training has become more widespread. At the same time, the concept is gaining support at mental health agencies that appear eager to integrate proven treatment methods, said Joan Levy Zlotnik, executive director of IASWR. She noted social workers are the largest providers in the public and private sectors of mental health services in the U.S.

Drawing from the Institute of Medicine's definition of evidence-based medicine as the integration of the best researched evidence and clinical expertise with patient values, the IASWR report defines EBP as a process where the practitioner combines well-researched interventions with clinical experience, ethics and client preferences and culture to guide and inform the delivery of treatments and services.

Leonard Gibbs, professor emeritus of social work at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and author of Evidence-Based Practice for the Helping Professions, said he defines EBP as incorporating clinical expertise, client values and preferences and the current best evidence. "EBP incorporates all three of these elements," he said.

The idea of EBP as a learning tool started with Gibbs having access to a database of program evaluations in the early 1980s. However, it was a 1997 book, Evidence-Base Medicine, that broke down the questions into risk/prognosis, diagnosis, treatment effectiveness and more, Gibbs said. The book inspired his research of using EBP in the classroom and for assignments, he noted.

Gibbs said the reason EBP is particularly important for mental health education is how it relates directly to the mission of mental health work. Those in the field are involved in life-affecting decisions, he said. "The process of EBP can help to make better judgments and decisions in league with clients in real time, as the problems arise," Gibbs said.

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From January 2008 NASW News. © 2008 National Association of Social Workers. All Rights Reserved. NASW News articles may be copied for personal use, but proper notice of copyright and credit to the NASW News must appear on all copies made. This permission does not apply to reproduction for advertising, promotion, resale, or other commercial purposes.