in this special issue of egems , we explore the struggles related to bringing evidence into day - to - day practice , what i define as the  evidence gap . 
we are all aware of high quality evidence in the form of guidelines , randomized clinical trials for treatments and diagnostic tests , and clinical prediction rules , which are all readily available online .
we also know that electronic health records ( ehrs ) are now ubiquitous in health care and in most practices across the country .
how we marry this high quality evidence and the practice of medicine through effective decision support is a major challenge .
all of the articles in this issue explore , in some fashion , cds systems and how we can best bring providers and their work environment to the evidence .
much more research and funding is needed in this area if we hope to improve the dissemination and implementation of evidence in practice .
while the featured examples , techniques , and tools in the special issue are a promising start to improving usability and cds , many of the papers highlight current gaps in knowledge and a great need for generalizable approaches .
the great promise is for  learning  approaches to generate new evidence and to integrate this evidence in reliable , patient - centered ways at scale using new technology .
closing the evidence gap is a real possibility , but only if the community works together to innovate and invest in research on the best ways to disseminate , communicate , and implement evidence in practice .
 introduction : in this special issue of egems , we explore the struggles related to bringing evidence into day - to - day practice , what i define as the  evidence gap .  we are all aware of high quality evidence in the form of guidelines , randomized clinical trials for treatments and diagnostic tests , and clinical prediction rules , which are all readily available online . 
 we also know that electronic health records ( ehrs ) are now ubiquitous in health care and in most practices across the country . 
 how we marry this high quality evidence and the practice of medicine through effective decision support is a major challenge.about the issue : all of the articles in this issue explore , in some fashion , cds systems and how we can best bring providers and their work environment to the evidence . 
 we are at the very early stages of the science of usability . 
 much more research and funding is needed in this area if we hope to improve the dissemination and implementation of evidence in practice . 
 while the featured examples , techniques , and tools in the special issue are a promising start to improving usability and cds , many of the papers highlight current gaps in knowledge and a great need for generalizable approaches . 
 the great promise is for  learning  approaches to generate new evidence and to integrate this evidence in reliable , patient - centered ways at scale using new technology . 
 closing the evidence gap is a real possibility , but only if the community works together to innovate and invest in research on the best ways to disseminate , communicate , and implement evidence in practice . 
Introduction:
About the Issue: