Skip to main content

Case Study of Allied Health and Complementary and Alternate Medicine

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Umbrella Reviews

Abstract

With increasing production of, and access to, research evidence, umbrella reviews are gaining prominence as a structured and systematic means for summarising the best, high-level evidence to answer a clinical and review question. Umbrella reviews may act as an important, timely and efficient resource as, due to its very nature, it summarises existing reviews through a systematic, rigorous, transparent and universally recognised set of processes. Allied health and complementary and alternate medicine comprise of a collective of health-care professions which are uniquely diverse, in terms of their roles and responsibilities, and yet are grouped under the umbrella term “allied health” and “complementary and alternate medicine”. Umbrella reviews, as a methodology to systematically review the best research evidence, is in its infancy in these professions. This chapter summarises four purposively selected umbrella reviews conducted in allied health and complementary and alternate medicine and discusses some of the opportunities and challenges in undertaking umbrella reviews within this field.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 149.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 199.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 199.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Armstrong BK, Gillespie JA, Leeder SR, Rubin GL, Russell LM. Challenges in health and health care for Australia. Med J Aust. 2007;187(9):485–9.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Sackett DL, Rosenberg WMC, Gray JAM, Haynes RB, Richardson WS. Evidence based medicine: what it is and what it isn’t. Br Med J. 1996;312:71–2.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Hoffmann T, Bennett S, Del Mar C. Evidence-based practice across the health professions. Sydney, Australia: Elsevier; 2001.

    Google Scholar 

  4. Australian Government: National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). NHMRC additional levels of evidence and grades for recommendations for developers of guidelines- stage 2 consultation. Australia: Canberra; 2009.

    Google Scholar 

  5. Thomas SW, McLean L, Debnam A. The role of allied health in health care reform. N C Med J. 2011;72(5):417–9.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Turnbull C, Grimmer-Somers K, Kumar S, May E, Law D, Ashworth E. Allied, scientific and complementary health professionals: a new model for australian ‘allied health’. Aust Health Rev. 2009;33(1):27–37.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Coulter ID, Willis EM. The rise and rise of complementary and alternative medicine: a sociological perspective. Med J Aust. 2004;180(11):587–9.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Zollman C, Vickers A. What is complementary medicine? Br Med J. 1999;319:693.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Zhang W, Pritzker SE, Hui KK. Factors affecting definitions of and approaches to integrative medicine: a mixed methods study examining China’s integrative medicine development. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2015. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2015/458765.

  10. Dixon J, Biehal N, Green J, Sinclair I, Kay C, Parry E. Trials and tribulations: challenges and prospects for randomized controlled trials of social work with children. Br J Soc Work. 2014;44:1563–81.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Blackwood B. Methodological issues in evaluating complex healthcare interventions. J Adv Nurs. 2006;54(5):612–22.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Dutta J, Petticrew M. Challenges to evaluating complex interventions: a content analysis of published papers. BMC Public Health. 2013;13:568.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Wells M, Wiliams B, Treweek S, Coyle J, Taylor J. Intervention description is not enough: evidence from an in-depth multiple case study on the untold role and impact of context in randomised controlled trials of seven complex interventions. Trials. 2012;13:95. doi:10.1186/1745-6215-13-95.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Broeder J, Donze A. The role of qualitative research in evidence-based practice. Neonatal Netw. 2010;3:197–202(6).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Torgerson CJ. Publication bias: the achilles heel of systematic reviews? Br J Educ Stud. 2006. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8527.2006.00332.x.

    Google Scholar 

  16. Morrison A, Polisena J, Husereau D, Moulton K, Clark M, Fiander M, Mierzwinski-Urban M, Clifford T, Hutton B, Rabb D. The effect of English-language restriction on systematic review-based meta-analyses: a systematic review of empirical studies. Int J Technol Assess Health Care. 2012;28(2):138–44. doi:10.1017/S0266462312000086.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Kumar S, Beaton K, Hughes T. The effectiveness of massage therapy for the treatment of non-specific low back pain: a systematic review of systematic reviews. Int J Gen Med. 2013. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/IJGM.S50243.

  18. Bidonde J, Busch AJ, Bath B, Milosavljevic S. Exercise for adults with fibromyalgia: an umbrella systematic review with synthesis of best evidence. Curr Rheumatol Rev. 2014;10:45–79.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Ernst E, Canter PH. A systematic review of systematic reviews of spinal manipulation. J R Soc Med. 2006;99:192–6.

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Gilbey A, Ernst E, Tani K. A systematic review of reviews of systematic reviews of acupuncture. Focus Altern Complement Ther. 2013. doi:10.1111/fct.12004.

    Google Scholar 

  21. Kendall S. What do we mean by evidence? Implication for primary health care nursing. J Interprof Care. 1997;11(1):23–34.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Milanese S. The use of RCT’s in manual therapy – are we trying to fit a round peg into a square hole? Man Ther. 2011. doi:10.1016/j.math.2011.02.007.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Saravana Kumar BSc, MPT, PhD .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Kumar, S. (2016). Case Study of Allied Health and Complementary and Alternate Medicine. In: Biondi-Zoccai, G. (eds) Umbrella Reviews. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-25655-9_14

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-25655-9_14

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-25653-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-25655-9

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics