Evidence and Standards

Using evidence in care

Healthcare services aim to provide high-quality care on the best available evidence. Evidence based practice brings together:

• up‑to‑date research
• clinical expertise
• people’s values and preferences

National guidance

In the UK and Scotland, national bodies set best practice, including:

• NICE (UK)
• SIGN (Scotland)

These organisations review scientific research and produce national guidelines for care.

Healthcare Improvement Scotland also provide more details on standards and indicators for care services.

Finding best evidence

Other sources of best evidence available to all health and social care staff include:

• The Right Decision Service from Healthcare Improvement Scotland
• Scotland’s decision support platform for health and social care
• The Knowledge Network from NHS Education for Scotland
• The digital library for health and social care
• Local NHS library and knowledge services
• Provide support to find and summarise best evidence

These services help staff quickly access and understand reliable evidence to support care and decision making.

This is not an exhaustive list, and it is important for professionals to ensure they are using the most appropriate and up to date guidance for their services.

EiC brings evidence and practice together

EiC combines:

• research evidence
• professional judgement and experience

This creates a strong foundation for:

• clear goals
• shared priorities
• high‑quality, person‑centred care