Decision-Making in Audiology: Balancing Evidence-Based Practice and Patient-Centered Care.
Isabelle Boisvert, Jennifer Clemesha, Erik Lundmark and 3 others
PMID 28752808WHAT IT FOUND
Audiologists rated test results, experience, and client preferences as most important.
In difficult hearing cases, many reported using client goals and colleagues. Peer-reviewed literature was less often mentioned. These are self-reports from 96 conference attendees.
Key findings
01Audiologists ranked test results, clinical experience, and client opinion as the most important information sources, while peer-reviewed literature was seen as more reliable than important.
02In difficult rehabilitation cases, client goals and preferences were the most frequently mentioned information source, and 54% of respondents said they considered them.
03When information sources conflicted, discussion with colleagues or experts was the most frequently mentioned response, and 30% said they would refer only to a colleague or expert.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
Ninety-six questionnaires were completed from an estimated 1,138 attendees, and the paper states a response rate of 8.5%. Respondents were self-selected conference attendees, and the paper says they may have been more interested in research than audiologists who did not respond. The sample was mostly Australian, so it may not represent audiologists elsewhere. The study asked what clinicians said they would do, not what they actually did with patients. The questionnaire focused only on rehabilitative decisions, not diagnostic or procedural decisions. The second open-ended question may have been influenced by the content of the questionnaire itself. The paper notes that age and years of practice were correlated, which can make the guideline-use analysis unstable.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that audiologists have achieved evidence-based, patient-centered care. The paper reports self-selected conference attendees' questionnaire answers, not observed patient decisions, and says self-selection may bias reports toward more EBP and PCC.