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Building evidence-based practice competencies among rehabilitation students: a qualitative exploration of faculty and preceptors’ perspectives

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Abstract

Medical education literature suggests clinically-integrated teaching may be the most effective approach to teach evidence-based practice (EBP). Before implementing this educational best practice in rehabilitation curricula, it is imperative to better understand the current context, barriers and facilitators to teach EBP in rehabilitation from the academic to the clinical setting. The aim of this study was to explore faculty and preceptors’ experiences and perceptions of teaching EBP in rehabilitation professions, namely occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech-language pathology. We gathered data from seven focus groups and an individual interview with a sample of 24 faculty and 15 preceptors, i.e., clinical supervisors. Data collected were subjected to inductive thematic content analysis. We identified three overarching themes and corresponding strategies. First, “Recognizing EBP as a multifaceted concept” denoted participants’ lack of consensus regarding the meaning and scope of EBP, and their awareness of such discrepancies. Second, “Complexity of EBP is at the core of teaching practices and experiences” referred to participants’ perception of EBP as a complex process involving high-level cognitive skills, which influenced their teaching practices and challenged students and themselves. Third, “Connections and divides between research and practice” represented the limited and delicate connection between faculty and preceptors, the factors either bridging or maintaining the gap between them, and the impacts of such connections and divides on teaching. Improving collaboration between faculty and preceptors constitutes an essential first step towards more effective EBP training programs in rehabilitation that could be facilitated through online communities of practice or integrated knowledge translation research projects.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the financial support provided by the Richard and Edith Strauss Canada Foundation and the Centre for interdisciplinary research in rehabilitation of greater Montreal (CRIR). We would like to thank the faculty and preceptors who participated in this study and express our gratitude to Fatima Amari and Heather Owens for their valuable assistance in recruitment and data collection. A special thank you to Karsten Steinhauer for his input at every step of the project and his support with the implementation of the study protocol in S-LP teaching program. Last, we would like to thank the experts who reviewed our focus group interview guide: Marie-Eve Caty, Isabelle David, Josée Gauthier, Marie Julien, Dahlia Kairy and Brigitte Vachon.

Funding

This study was supported by the Richard and Edith Strauss Canada Foundation and the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal (CRIR).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Physical and Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Canada

    Marie-Christine Hallé, André Bussières, Liliane Asseraf-Pasin, Caroline Storr, Susanne Mak & Aliki Thomas

  2. Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal (CRIR), Montreal, Canada

    Marie-Christine Hallé, André Bussières, Susanne Mak & Aliki Thomas

  3. Département chiropratique, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, Canada

    André Bussières

  4. Institute of Health Sciences Education, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Canada

    Susanne Mak & Aliki Thomas

  5. School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, McGill University, Montreal, Canada

    Kelly Root

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  1. Marie-Christine Hallé
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Correspondence to Aliki Thomas.

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Hallé, MC., Bussières, A., Asseraf-Pasin, L. et al. Building evidence-based practice competencies among rehabilitation students: a qualitative exploration of faculty and preceptors’ perspectives. Adv in Health Sci Educ 26, 1311–1338 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-021-10051-0

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