Attitudes of teachers to evidence based medicine

Abstract

AIM: To describe the attitudes of general practitioners and specialist clinical teachers toward teaching evidence based medicine (EBM). PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: Questionnaire survey of 114 general practitioner and 162 specialist university teachers teaching EBM. RESULTS: Two hundred and six (80%) teachers responded; 196 regularly consulted with patients, 21% had received training, and 40% taught EBM. Those with formal training (68%) taught more often than without (32%) (p=0.0001), 27% had taught EBM for over 5 years. More GPs (57%) than specialists (40%) asked students to assist in finding evidence (p=0.036). Most welcomed EBM and were confident in teaching it. Barriers included antagonism to EBM philosophy, shortage of time, and a need for training in teaching EBM. DISCUSSION: Although not all trained, GPs and specialists teach EBM, enjoy doing so, and want to increase their ability to teach it.