ABSTRACT:

Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) has become a foundational approach in modern healthcare delivery, emphasizing the use of current, valid, and clinically relevant evidence in decision-making. Health professionals including physicians, nurses, pharmacists, laboratory scientists, physiotherapists, and public health practitioners depend on timely access to credible medical information to ensure accurate diagnosis, safe treatment decisions, and improved patient outcomes. Medical libraries, whether situated in teaching hospitals, medical schools, research institutes, or specialized healthcare facilities, serve as critical infrastructures for promoting and sustaining evidence-based healthcare practice. They provide access to scholarly databases, peer-reviewed journals, clinical guidelines, and systematic reviews, while also offering professional support through literature searching, information literacy training, research assistance, and knowledge management services. This paper examines the role of medical libraries in supporting evidence-based practice among health professionals. It explores key concepts of EBP, highlights the functions of medical libraries in facilitating evidence access and utilization, and discusses challenges limiting library support for EBP such as inadequate funding, limited digital infrastructure, poor awareness, and shortage of trained medical librarians. The paper also provides recommendations for strengthening medical library services through capacity building, digital transformation, collaborative partnerships, and policy support. The study concludes that medical libraries are indispensable partners in healthcare delivery and play an essential role in improving clinical outcomes by empowering health professionals with evidence-based information resources and services.

Keywords: Medical libraries, Evidence-based practice, Health professionals, Knowledge management, Health information services.