Cover your ears
“Scurlock-Evans et al reference studies indicating that while 69% of physical therapists (PTs) claim to read relevant research only 26% critically appraise it.”
This is disheartening. Tradition trumps evidence in certain cases and without actually reading and attempting to understand the evidence, we will continue to treat using a little bit of evidence and a whole lot of tradition. We are a doctoring profession. I went back to school to get this piece of paper that says doctor. I am also clinical faculty at GSU and have worked as a clinical instructor in both private and non-for-profit practices. I have seen first-hand that some (more than 90%) of students don’t have the passion, will, time, or knowledge to actually read anything more than is handed to them in PowerPoint. I have actually had students get upset when I give them reading assignments to do. Once students graduates, they enter the real world of the profession. If you didn’t have the time to read and take your studying seriously when all you had to worry about was the 40 hours of school, how is the switch going to flip and all of a sudden one will begin studying when leisure time is taken up by other priorities? We have to represent our profession…if for nothing else than for our patients and personal pride. Our profession is supposed to live by these core values, but unfortunately those that display all of them are highlighted instead of the norm. One person that is highlighted, for good reason is the founder of PT Haven. I had the pleasure of meeting Efosa before he graduated and he had his priorities in order then and has lived up to the standards that he set for himself during our conversation. This is but one of many PT’s that practice all aspects of the core values of our profession. I say many, but know that I can’t say all.
Back to the point, if we aren’t able to critically read the research, then we can’t confidently apply the research. So much for EBP or “evidence informed practice”.
“It has been estimated to take an average of 17 years for research evidence to fully integrate into clinical practice”
Are you F’N kidding me?! I know this to be true. I wish I had a thousand dollars every time that I heard a student say that they were told that the information learned was taught because it would be on the boards! I’d be retired by now. There is so much information that is outdated, but students continue to learn it because they will be tested on it. At this point, I can’t state that schools are attempting to produce clinicians, but instead are producing students that can pass a test. We are a doctoring profession. The damn well better be able to pass a test or they shouldn’t be treating patients!!! With that said, it is the school’s responsibility to ensure that not only can the student pass a test, but also be able to treat a patient with confidence and critical thought. This is where I believe that the school’s are failing the students. Should the student end up in a clinical rotation that doesn’t practice the core values of the profession, then the student will learn in a “trial by fire” by being thrown into treating patients although they are fully unaware of the mistakes that they may be making in the process. They aren’t prepared for this type of training. I have taken students for about 10 years and in 10 years I have had 2 students that I could say that I had nothing left to teach by the end of the clinical. I felt like Mr. Miyagi watching the crane kick by the final weeks. As you can see though, this isn’t the norm. Part of this is that school’s haven’t fully integrated the evidence to teach the students. I get it. I hear it from professors… “there is only so much time during the day”. I don’t know where the blame for a lack of preparedness comes into play. It could be the governing body of PT programs for not changing the required learning prior to taking the PT boards, it could be the universities for not embracing clinical practice but instead teaching from books that are at least 5 years outdated (don’t get me wrong, the students need to know the basics from the books, but this is the students responsibility due to the lack of time), it could be the lack of quality clinical rotation sites from which to learn from those therapists that not only practice using best/current evidence but also utilize the core values on a daily basis and finally it is the students fault for not taking more ownership over his/her education. There is a lot of blame to go around, but in the end it is the patient that suffers from this cycle of inefficiencies surrounding learning.
Schuppe V. Viewpoints: Exploring the knowledge-to-practice gap. PT in Motion. March 2017:6.