Appraisal of Evidence for Professional Practice in Social Work - Coursework Example

Appraisal of Evidence for Professional Practice in Social Work Appraisal of Evidence for Professional Practice in Social Work Evidence based practice (EBP) that is the ‘conscientious, explicit and judicious use of the best evidence in making decision about the care of an individual’ (Gambrill 1999: p. 346) is a practice that has been gaining a lot recognition and importance in the field of medical sciences since its beginning. This practice was formally introduced in 1992 initially in the medicine yet later it gained ground in many other fields like nursing, psychology, education and dentistry. The idea of EBP is centered around three things that includes 1) personal assessment of an individual, 2) a search for the best available external sign or indication related to client’s apprehensions and an approximation of range to which this applies to a specific client and 3) pensiveness of values and hopes of clients (Gambrill 1999). The process of EBP is based on the fact that the decisions should be made after the research related to the current study that has been made from various other studies. The interpretation of the study has to be done using various tools and predefined set of instructions and procedures. This will give a definite sound to the whole research and will make the research more tangible and lucid. The sets of rules that are defined in evidence based practice are those that do not consider the derivative results from the qualitative and theoretical studies. Instead the results derived from quantitative study are only considered in the EBPs. The results derived or obtained by applying the quantitative studies are known as the evidence. Evidence-based behavioral practice (EBBP) involves making decisions about how to improve and enhance health or provide care by incorporating the best available evidence with general practitioner expertise and other “resources and with the characteristics, state, needs, values and preferences of those who will be affected” (Spring et al. n. d. ). The whole process is carried out in a manner that is well-matched with the environmental and organizational background. Evidence based practice facilitates to eliminate the quacks present in a process that falter the whole concepts and studies related to medicine and various practices. The idea of evidence based practice has come into existence that there were a lot of issues with the studies and researches that were being done and all these issues were relevant to the concreteness of the study. With the introduction of the concept of evidence based practice, professionals were bound to use the best evidence that was available and this increased the chances and frequency of better studies and better researched projects (Poell 2011). The core activity that is used in connection with evidence based practice is numerous observations and continuous regular checkups and updates so that the research that is to be done is of sound quality. Also there is regular and meticulous recording of data and various other updates that can be used for systematic retrieval if required. Hence because of better results and more improved treatments of patients the whole process of EBP has gained an imminence importance. It has also improved the archiving techniques of existing and future research work. A lot of development related to EBP has been done. Various toolkits with a defined, designed framework and templates have been designed for general practitioners that support the successful completion of an evidence based treatment of patients (Rapid Evidence Assessment Toolkit index n. d.). There is a lot of intricate decision making that is involved in the evidence based practice because each and every patient has different characteristics and this causes a lot of thought process and intuition based judgments on the part of the practitioner. The practitioner can use the details to make an assumption especially in the case of adult mental patients, but then again it is very important that the practitioner should also make sure that the various characteristics of the patients should be considered before the decision is made as each and every patient differs in the symptoms (Rapid Evidence Assessment Toolkit index n. d.). In case of psychological patients and mental illnesses the doctors use the approaches that are all relevant to the studies related to psychology. The evidences that are used in relation with the psychology are those that some treatments of mental illnesses might be better, while some of the approaches might not be effective in some cases. Therefore the best method that can be used is to at first study the symptoms of the patient that has arrived with some kind of mental illness and then look up the archives to find if any such conditions have been recorded before, if this has happened then the practitioner then should look up the history of previous cases and then considering the condition of the patient take action accordingly. It is very important that the condition of the patient is taken into consideration otherwise blank application of previous practices would yield no impact or result (Pritchard 2006). There are six categories that should be considered when the Evidence based practiced is being applied, they are, using the research design as the basis of the practice that would be used, studying the theoretical background of the problem and the metal illness that is there and then using the existing practices as a tool to take required action, studying the various practices and then comparing the current situation to realize whether there is any evidence of possible harm if a certain practice is applied in the current situation of mental illness, and then using the concept of general acceptance so that the results are duly found. . There are two basic principles that are to be taken care of when working through the evidence based practice for a patient. I It should be based on research based studies. II That these research studies are preferred and inferred according to some precise customs features for EBP. Since EBP treatment is based on the researched evidence hence it uses current best evidence in making the right kind of decision in the process of cure for the patients. Health care is a very sensitive area; the psychologists like doctors, continuously struggle and work hard to get the best of available practices. Earlier the practices that were used were all very much based on the simple methods and were very much based in intuition rather than facts. Evidence based practices are the ones that have been established after they were widely carried out as experiments and the data then collected and recorded. Various scientific research works have proved that compared to many other available psychological practices, EBP proved to be the most effective technique. In EBPs generally method of treatment has been evaluated, reviewed and corrected with time so that the patients can enjoy best of health practices. Most common of the therapies or practice that is used under the umbrella of evidence based practices are the cognitive and the behavior therapies. The important feature of EBP is that that this kind of treatment can be used for any age group (children, young and adults) at the same time (Whittaker 2009). There are a few criteria that should be satisfied for a practice to be labeled as the evidence based practice, and certifies the efficiency and efficacy of the practice (Van Wormer & Thyer 2010): IOWA PIC criteria: According to this criterion a practice should have been considered as effective and workable by at least one clinic that has a high traffic of patients. Clinical trials are considered as a very easy and a near about accurate method to determine whether the method is effective or not. But this cannot be just any clinic, there are some set of external and as well as internal criteria set for the clinic to qualify as one that can be used for certifying a practice as a best practice. The research has to remain effective when it is replicated over other clinics too. Even the methods should remain constant even when they are being used over different samples, regions and different population category. This kind of approach has proved to be very helpful, as many a time it has been difficult for various organizations to adjust or buy various methods to treat their patients. This evidence based practices proves to be very helpful as many clinics who cannot afford to buy various treatments can use these for a wide range of psychological disorders. The practice should target the behavior of the patient, if it cannot completely cure the behavior, it should at least have some impact on it. The practice should be designed in such a way that it has direct relation with the behavior, even if the practice improves the health of a patient, it will not be considered applicable as the patient still will have that habit existing in him. Usually these kinds of treatments are used as to be able to help a person get rid of a certain habit in his behavior. The practice should be applicable in the rural areas as well as in low density areas. It is highly advisable for the practice to be applicable, as the entire reason for the existence of the evidence based practice finishes if it is not widely applicable. The first criteria according to researchers is that it should be derived after much experimentation and seeing the trend of success in the data collected then only it can be made applicable. Even then scientists believe that the practice must have some kind of sound grounds or basis in the field of science and should not be made on intuition basis (Corby 2006). The evidence based practice should be a feasible one, it can be used in group or individual format, the people who will be using it consider it worth the cost, it should not be costly and lastly it should be easy to train. These evidence based practices are usually designed keeping in view the budgets. These researches are usually funded by the governments; therefore, when validating such practices for their efficiency or effectiveness it is very important that they are cost effective and trainable at the same time. The practice should be based on a sound articulated theory and not just random thought. Theories that are designed on the basis of some well-established theories are considered to be accurate. Theory driven practices are considered to be truer and more applicable and as well as more effective (Corby 2006). The very common example of such practices is treatment of a child suffering from lack of attention. In such case the behavior of child becomes very erratic and he becomes either very withdrawn or very active. Though it is normal for a child to be subdued at some times and active at another yet if this kind of behavior swings too frequent and becomes a persistent, prolonged habitual behavior then it is necessary that a child should be examine by a psychiatrist. Once the child has been taken to a psychiatrist or psychologist and he starts his treatment, it is very important and general practice that first he has to consult the previous archived information from the earlier practices. In general he first considers the condition of the patient and probes into the circumstances that have brought about the condition and then he suggests the required therapy for treatment and finally the closure of the practice (Lewis 2004; Shappard 2004). Another example of EBP treatment is the treatment of adults suffering with schizophrenia. In such case the adults are given medicines along with the psychological intercessions which help the medical practitioners to improve the patient conditions and hence cure. Again various studies have proved that such treatment proves to be the most effective and useful over the time compared to other ways of treatment. The EBPs have also appeared in various American Alzheimer’s related treatment as mentioned below (Woodward 2011): Antipsychotic medications: These medications are the highest and most frequently used method to curb the factors related to mental illness in the patients. The sole reason that this practice is considered as the best practice is that the relapse of the patients that are treated with medicines is quite less also the symptoms of the illness is reduced greatly through the treatment that is done with medicines. Family education and support: When the family is given support programs and trained and told about the issues that arrive along with the disease, it has been observed that the relapse of the patient is quite less. It is very important that the family is taught about all the issues that are involved with the disease so that they can learn to cope better with all the progressing elements that come with the disease. Illness-specific counseling: Though this practice is also used but the relapse rate is high in them as compared to the other treatments as they cause the patient to feel left out and lonely and thus do not have the desired impact on the patient. Assertive Community Treatment: Treating the patients in groups also help the patients feel that they are not alone and this helps create better response from the patients. Supported employment: This helps the patient feel that he is not dependent upon any one and thus will struggle to improve more and create a better life for themselves. To implement the EBP effetely is critically important that all nurses’ staff which is primarily responsible for treating the patients and taking care of the patients should be trained properly and all the practices and methodologies should be explained and understood very well explained clearly ( Woodward & Mestecky 2011). Also all support staff should undergo extensive frequent training sessions to marginalize any disparities and hence a mishaps during the treatment of a patient due to improper handling and lack of knowledge on the part of the nursing and the medical staff. The chances of relapse of the patients also increase if the medical staff is not well trained and well-acquainted with all methodologies, procedures of EBPs (Poell, Rob & Woerkom 2011). Reference List Greemhalgh , T., & Hurwitz, B. (1998). Narrative based medicine: dialogue and discourse in clinical practice. London, BMJ Books. Gambrill, E. (1999). Evidence-based practice: An alternative to authority-based practice. Families in Society, Vol.80, No. 4, pp.341-345. Bonnie Spring, B, Abrantes, A. M, & Kreslake, J.M. (n. d.). Rapid Evidence Assessment Toolkit sitemap: REA toolkit. London, Government Social Research Unit. Available from: < http://www.gsr.gov.uk/professional_guidance/rea_toolkit/sitemap.asp>. [20 January 2013]. Woodward, S., & Mestecky, A. (2011). Neuroscience nursing: evidence-based practice. Chichester, West Sussex, U.K., Blackwell Pub. Poell, Rob, F, Marianne, V & Woerkom. (2011). Supporting Workplace Learning: Towards Evidence-Based Practice. Dordrecht: Print. Van Wormer, S & Thyer, B. A. (2010). Evidence-based practice in the field of substance abuse: a book of readings. Thousand Oaks, Calif, Sage. Trauer, T. (2010). Outcome measurement in mental health: theory and practice. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. PRITCHARD, C. (2006). Mental health social work evidence-based practice. London, Rutledge. Available from: . [20 January 2013]. PRITCHARD, C. (2006). Mental health social work evidence-based practice. London, Routledge. Available from: . [20 January 2013]. Gray, M., Plath, D., & Weeb, S. A. (2009). Evidence-based social work: a critical stance. London, Routledge. Whittaker, A. (2009). Research skills for social work. Exeter, Learning Matters. Available from: < http://site.ebrary.com/id/10519145>. [20 January 2013]. Sheppard, M. (2004). Appraising and using social research in the human services an introduction for social work and health professionals. London, Jessica Kingsley Publishers. Available from: < http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&scope=site&db=nlebk&db=nlabk&AN=129937 >. [20 January 2013]. Lewis, V. (2004). The reality of research with children and young people. London, Sage in association with the Open University. 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