title: Connecting Education to Quality: Engaging Medical Students in the Development of Evidence-Based Clinical Decision Support Tools.
abstract: Evidence-based practice (EBP) skills are crucial for delivering high-quality patient care. It is essential that medical students learn EBP concepts through a practical, in-depth research project. To date, literature on preparing students in this manner is limited.
  
  
  
  In academic year 2014-2015, the Medical University of South Carolina's (MUSC's) Center for Evidence-Based Practice (now known as the Value Institute) partnered with College of Medicine faculty to revitalize the undergraduate medical student EBP curriculum. Without adding to the number of the lecture hours, the curriculum was restructured to be more process driven, project based, and clinically relevant. The resulting yearlong EBP course partnered small teams of medical students with interprofessional clinical teams to engage the students in developing evidence-based clinical decision support tools.
  
  
  
  The content developed during the EBP projects is currently being used to develop evidence-based clinical practice guidelines and accompanying order sets.
  
  
  
  It is likely that this model will serve as a new framework for guideline development and will greatly expand the breadth of evidence-based content currently produced and available for clinicians at the MUSC. It would be feasible to offer a similar course within the MUSC to other disciplines and colleges, or at other institutions, if there were support from administration, interest on the part of clinicians and medical faculty, and individuals with the required expertise available to develop the curriculum and facilitate the course. It is worth considering how to improve the course and evaluating opportunities to implement it within other settings.
authors.affiliation: E.A. Crabtree is currently director, Clinical Integration and Evidence-Based Practice, assistant professor, Department of Medical Informatics and Clinical Epidemiology, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, Oregon, and PhD candidate, University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston, Texas. At the time of writing, E.A. Crabtree was director, Center for Evidence-Based Practice (now known as the Value Institute), assistant professor, Department of Library and Information Sciences and Department of Public Health Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, and PhD candidate, University of Texas School of Public Health, Houston, Texas. E. Brennan is research informationist and assistant professor, Department of Library Science and Informatics and Department of Pediatrics, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina. A. Davis is clinical evidence-based practice analyst, Center for Evidence-Based Practice (now known as the Value Institute), Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina. J.E. Squires is medical director of transfusion medicine and associate professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina.
authors.forename: Elizabeth A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Crabtree
authors.forename: Emily
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Brennan
authors.forename: Amanda
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.forename: Jerry E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Squires
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003479:Curriculum; D020000:Decision Support Systems, Clinical; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000458:organization & administration*; D055317:Evidence-Based Practice / Q000193:education*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D058996:Quality Improvement / Q000458:organization & administration*; D013022:South Carolina; D013337:Students, Medical