• our knowledge needs to be kept up–to–date
• our knowledge can be wrong
• the way research is done can influence the results (i.e. it can be biased)
• practice must be informed by the findings of the best quality research
• clinicians must integrate this evidence with their clinical knowledge and expertise
• clinicians and patients should make a decision together based on this knowledge, the evidence and the individual patient's values and preferences.

INTRODUCTION page 2 of 14