When implementing evidenced-based practice, there are five major steps to its development: ask, acquire, appraise, apply and assess. Research involves gathering data, comparing, and analyzing it to produce information that is viable to a particular topic being evaluated. Critical appraisal is one of the most important components to evidence-based practice. According to the Center for Evidence-Based Medicine (n.d.), critical appraisal is the process of carefully and thoroughly evaluating research. The reason behind critical appraisal of research is to identify the level of evidence, how well it was conducted and evaluate it for relevance to one’s practice (Fineout-Overholt, Melnyk, Stillwell & Williamson, 2010). (2010).The purpose of this forum discussion is to explore the importance of critical appraisal, potential barriers faced when doing an appraisal, as well as, strategies to overcome such barriers. …show more content…
The mere fact that an individual study has been published in a peer-review journal doesn’t mean that it is the best evidence. It is also important because one needs to use the best evidence possible so that one is able to translate that evidence into practice. Lastly, it is important to have an understanding of what you are reading, so evaluating a journal critically allows the reader to fully get a grasp on what that piece of work is talking