Evidence-Based Practice in Practice : Exploring Conditions for Using Research in Physiotherapy

Abstract

Research developments have led to increased opportunities for the use of improved diagnostic and treatment methods in physiotherapy and other areas of health care. The emergence of the evidence-based practice (EBP) movement has led to higher expectations for a more research-informed health care practice that integrates the best available research evidence with clinical experience and patient priorities and values. Physiotherapy research has grown exponentially, contributing to an increased interest in achieving a more evidence-based physiotherapy practice. However, implementation research has identified many individual and contextual barriers to research use. Strategies to achieve a more EBP tend to narrowly target individual practitioners to influence their knowledge, skills and attitudes concerning research use. However, there is an emerging recognition that contextual conditions such as leadership and culture are critical to successfully implementing EBP. Against this background, the overall aim of this thesis was to explore conditions at different levels, from the individual level to the organizational level and beyond, for the use of research and implementation of an evidence-based physiotherapy practice. The thesis consists of four interrelated papers that address various aspects of the aim. Individual and focus group interviews were conducted with physiotherapists and managers within physiotherapy in various county councils in Sweden between 2011 and 2014. Data were analysed using qualitative content analysis, direct content analysis and hermeneutics. It was found that many different types of motivation underlie physiotherapists’ use of research in their clinical practice, from amotivation (i.e. a lack of intention to engage in research use) to intrinsic motivation (research use is perceived as interesting and satisfying in itself). Most physiotherapists tend to view research use in favourable terms. Physiotherapists’ participation in a research project can yield many individual learning experiences that might contribute to a more research-informed physiotherapy practice. However, organizational learning was more limited. Numerous conditions at different levels (individual, workplace and extra-organizational levels) provide support for physiotherapists’ use of research in their clinical practice. However, physiotherapy leaders appear to contribute to a modest degree to establishing a culture that is conducive to implementing EBP in physiotherapy practice. Instead, EBP issues largely seem to depend on committed individual physiotherapists who keep to up to date with research in physiotherapy and inform colleagues about the latest research findings.