Enhance practice with evidence-based excellence for physios and allied health.
Evidence-based healthcare begins with formulating precise clinical questions and accessing high-quality research to inform practice decisions. However, challenges arise when there is a lack of understanding of study design features and difficulties navigating the vast volume of published articles.
The Physiotherapy Evidence Database (PEDro) is crucial in indexing evidence to guide physiotherapy practice. An analysis of 1.3 million PEDro searches revealed that only 50% of searches include sufficient critical elements of a clinical question. In contrast, 4% utilise features like truncation to enhance search efficiency, and 13% contain errors such as improper use of Boolean operators. Additionally, many healthcare professionals and clinical researchers need help identifying high-quality research due to a poor grasp of research methodology.
To address these challenges, a course has been designed to be broken down into four smaller and discrete parts, each offering different benefits to participants:
- How to Search: Participants will learn effective search strategies to navigate research databases and locate relevant evidence efficiently.
- How to Read and Review Similar Trial Designs: This segment will enhance participants' ability to evaluate and interpret research studies with simpler trial designs critically.
- How to Read and Review More Complex Trial Designs: Participants will delve deeper into reviewing and understanding research studies with more complex trial designs, honing their analytical skills.
- Discussion with the Editor of a Leading Physiotherapy Journal: In this two-hour session, participants will be able to engage with the Editor of a prominent global physiotherapy journal. They will share insights on what to look for in clinical papers, providing valuable guidance on enhancing research quality and increasing the chances of getting papers published.
By participating in these course modules, healthcare professionals and researchers can enhance their skills in conducting effective searches, critically appraising research, and understanding complex trial designs.
Engaging with experts can provide invaluable insights into the publication process, ultimately empowering participants to contribute high-quality research to physiotherapy.
Topics
Courses (i.e. modules/webinars) 1 – 3 are intended to be pre-recorded and available via Canvas using PowerPoint slides, case studies, and readings. The final webinar is a live Q&A session, potentially using Slido at the live sessions or integrating Canvas discussion boards.
Course 1 (1-2 hours Pre-recorded) - How to search the PEDRO database most efficiently. Tips and tricks.
Course 2 (1-2 hours Pre-recorded) - Example of assessing one type of clinical trial found in the database. Tips and tricks.
Course 3 (1-2 hours Pre-recorded) - Second example of a different type of clinical trial for assessing a kind of clinical trial found in the database. Tips and tricks.
Course 4 (2 hours – Live Q&A) - This is an opportunity for people to connect with the PEDRO team and discuss their search strategy, and the team will support them in creating the best strategy and solutions. The live webinar will be held on November 12, 7am - 9am OR 4pm - 6pm.
Learning outcomes
| After completing this course, a participant will be able to: |
| LO1 (Courses 1, 2, 3 & 4) |
ask the 'right' clinical question according to PICO elements (Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome) |
| LO2 (Course 1) |
design and adapt a search strategy in PEDro to find research relevant to their question |
| LO3 (Courses 2, 3 & 4) |
appraise the quality of clinical trials through a better understanding of study design features that could improve or reduce the quality of the results (e.g. randomisation, allocation concealment, blinding loss to follow-up, intention-to-treat) |
| LO4 (TBC) |
better understand aspects to consider when submitting a clinical paper for publication (course 4). |
Course delivery method
Online - pre-recorded webinars and a live Q&A session.
Courses 1 – 3 are pre-recorded and available via Canvas using PowerPoint slides, case studies, and readings.
The final webinar is a live Q&A session on Thursday 12 November at either 7:00am - 9:00am (AEST) OR 4:00pm - 6:00PM.
Course pre-requisites
Participants working in the field of health and/or medicine.
Additional Information
For terms and conditions, please view here.
| Course fees |
| Standard |
Course 1 & 2: $200 incl. GST
Course 1,2 & 3: $300 incl. GST
Course 4: $100 incl. GST
All 4 courses: $400 incl. GST
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| Alumni/Staff |
Please contact [email protected] |