ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the potential for Evidence-based Practice (EBP) to unite nurses and other professionals in efforts to improve care, as well as the difficulties in fulfilling such potential. Reviewing surveys of clinical psychologist's attitudes towards EBP, report that past clinical experiences are considered more influential in practice than 'current research on treatment outcome'. It is worth noting that the emphasis in comparative effectiveness research on comparing the outcomes of treatment options, including current routines, may help nurses to understand the relevance of EBP. A shared zeal for evidence-informed practice has the potential to enhance collaborative intraprofessional working and interprofessional working and to enhance provision of effective care. The chapter explores the reasons for nursing's reluctance to accept medicine's hierarchical view of evidence. It can be argued that the search for transdisciplinary understanding of EBP and of decision making is seriously impeded by the proliferation of academic disciplines and sub-disciplines.
