Background: In China, human services are provided actively in the field of developmental disorders, school education, clinical psychology, caring and nursing, and social welfare in general. Human services are in an initial stage, and with more government control as compared with Western countries. Contemporary China is facing many social problems as a result of dramatic social dynamics, e.g. extremely unbalanced income distribution per capita, unreasonable use limited health resources, deficits in the young generation s education and safety, and a emerging aging society. Objective: Present an account of the current situation and future developmental strategies of EBP in public health and other human service areas in China. Methods: Systematic review of randomized controlled trials and meta-analyses published by Chinese researchers. Results: Chinese Cochrane Center has a strong track record in developing various aspects of EBM in China. EBP is a new but promising trend of development in the country. In 2009 China ranked seven, fifth and second in terms of the number of Cochrane reviews, protocols, and titles, respectively, among contributing countries. In China, EBM has also been applied in the Essential Medicine List and the Chinese health care reform. Recently, Campbell Collaboration s criminology group has established a Chinese language website. Chinese Clearinghouse for Evidence-based Practice and Policy (CCE) is under development and targeting child welfare, mental health and aging services. Discussion: Although social and cultural contexts in Western countries and China are different, some evidence-based interventions developed and tested elsewhere may be used in China. Initially such interventions must be assessed by culturally competent professionals to determine their suitability for implementation in China. Ultimately, transported interventions must be tested for effectiveness in the Chinese context. A culture shift from authoritarian to evidence-based decision making ought to be a key factor in developing EBM, EBP, and the supporting research in China. So, the methodology of conducting high quality efficacy and effectiveness research as well developing high quality reviews in all fields of the human services should be promoted urgently in China. Both the strategy for promoting the EBM and the CCE are anticipated to narrow the gap between research and services delivery.