I have noticed a real shift in my “OT lifetime” when it
comes to evidence-based practice (EBP).
I have gone from not thinking about seeking out research to guide my
practice —to wondering what this whole EBP thing was about—to finally pushing OT students by frequently asking “What’s the evidence for that?”
“The argument for EBP is simple: If
there is a better way to practice, therapists should find it.”
(Law
& MacDermid, 2008, p.5)
The tricky thing is that for many
OTs there are often barriers to looking for, evaluating, and integrating the
evidence. Sometimes there is not enough
time to look for evidence. Sometimes
there isn’t access to libraries and databases.
Sometimes the barrier is not knowing how or where to search to answer
clinical questions.
Whatever your barrier, talk to
your student about how they might be able to help. While we want students to have placements that are as "hands on" as possible, having them search (or teaching you how to search) for evidence can be a win-win situation. After all, you have real-life clinical questions; they
have experience in searching for and evaluating the evidence. You will hopefully receive some useful
information for your practice; students will be able to see the real-life
application of their academic skills.
Don’t have access to
a library?
If you graduated from the U of M you are able to receive a
library card free of charge.
What you need to do: First you must obtain an alumni number. http://libguides.lib.umanitoba.ca/c.php?g=297462&p=1985606
What the card offers:
You can access a limited number of on-line journals (from home/work). You
can also go to the library to do full online searches and review/take out their
resources. If it is more convenient you,
you can also use the Fort Garry campus.
There are a number of OT Assessment
Tools in the library. You aren’t
able to remove the assessments or use them on clients, but you can definitely
look at them in the library if you are interested in learning more about them.
For more information on the library click here.
Law, M. & MacDermid, J. (2008).
Evidence-Based Rehabilitation: A Guide to Practice. (2nd ed.). Thorofare,
NJ: Slack Inc.
(The 3rd edition came out in 2013, you can borrow it
from the library or if you are close enough you borrow mine!).
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