Study Programmes 2015-2016
APPR1001-1  
information systems approach in Physiotherapy
Duration :
10h Th, 10h Pr
Number of credits :
Bachelor in physiotherapy and rehabilitation1
Bachelor in physiotherapy and rehabilitation1
Lecturer :
Françoise Pasleau
Language(s) of instruction :
French language
Organisation and examination :
Teaching in the second semester
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite :
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Course contents :
The main challenge for all health professionals is to manage the overabundance of information, in order to keep their knowledge up to date and evolve in their everyday practice. But where can information be found? What should they read, and what should they believe? To a lesser extent, students are faced with the same challenge, as they are required to solve problems and write assignments that meet the standards of scientific publication. In this context, the course's goal is to teach students a strict method for using information systems on physical therapy. The course focuses on the methods used to research, identify and evaluate the most reliable studies (based on evidence), which may guide clinical practice, or even any decision made in relation to this field. It is split in two parts. Given that students have only limited experience with biomedical literature, the course begins by exploring the content of scientific journals, which are the main vectors of information in the field of health. Attention will be given to the types of studies that present the highest level of evidence, i.e. randomised clinical trials (RCT) and secondary literature such as systematic reviews and meta-analyses. Activities will also be offered that enable participants to acquire habits of targeted and critical reading. This analysis will make students aware of the rules of scientific communication, which they must consistently follow, especially when writing their dissertation. The course will then continue with an introduction to bibliographical databases that inventory and index tens of millions of scientific articles. Such databases have a common logical structure and similar search features. Rather than looking into the ever-changing specificities of the various browsing interfaces that exist, the course will rather attempt to provide a single general approach that can be used in all circumstances. The teachings involved in both parts of the course will be summarised into a strict and systematic working method, inspired by the principles of evidence-based practice (EBP), which will be studied more in detail in a master course entitled Evidence Based Practice and Quality Management (KINE0003-1).
Learning outcomes of the course :
After receiving training on the methods of evidence-based practice (EBP), students should be able to work more autonomously, call upon critical thinking skills, master the use of various information resources, and understand and follow the rules of scientific communication. In concrete terms, they should be able to: 1. Recognise a need for information; 2. Formulate it using a specific question; 3. Choose the types of documents and resources that will have to be consulted; 4. Communicate efficiently with specialised search engines; 5. Adapt their research strategies to the goals pursued; 6. Select studies based on their relevance and their level of evidence; 7. Practice targeted, quick and efficient reading, relying on the standard structure of scientific articles; 8. Offer a critical perspective of the randomised clinical trials (RCT) and of the secondary literature (systematic reviews, meta-analyses); 9. Structure a scientific document in accordance with the applicable standards.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills :
As medical literature is published in English, students absolutely must be competent in this language, at the very least in terms of reading skills. Failing this, a dictionary and a little goodwill should be enough. Learning will be much easier if students have access to a computer, know the basics of how to use it, and can access and use online resources. Curiosity and imagination are also valued qualities, as they encourage students to learn and experiment.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods :
As this course is intended to help students acquire know-how, it offers a high number of practical activities that follow a predetermined sequence and call upon the cognitive and practical skills that the students should master. Lecture classes provide all the explanations and demonstrations that are used to complete individual assignments, which are then reviewed and corrected with the entire class. Each student is encouraged to build, with each class, a "laboratory book" where they write down their experiences and the corrections of their individual assignments, while also evaluating the quality of their own learning process.
Mode of delivery (face-to-face ; distance-learning) :
Ten in-person classes are given throughout the second term (10×2 hours). They consist in theoretical presentations, demonstrations, and explanations on how to complete assignments and how to use the tools made available to students. During this time, students are asked to complete short assignments involving researching information using a computer and critical reading. The answers are then provided during the next class. A course accessible online through eCampus offers a collection of all relevant documents: lecture slides, instructions and deadlines, reading criteria, links to recommended community resources and content pages (http://www.ecampus.ulg.ac.be/).  A public website dedicated to evidence-based medicine is also being developed (http://www.ebp.ulg.ac.be/). It is designed as a reference tool that will remain available for all health professionals, even after their studies.
Recommended or required readings :
Course notes and all relevant documents can be found on eCampus (http://www.ecampus.ulg.ac.be/) and on the http://www.ebp.ulg.ac.be/ portal.
Assessment methods and criteria :
The evaluation will deal both with the practical assignments completed during the year and on a regular exam (multiple choice with estimation of certainty). The former counts for 20% of the total mark, while the latter counts for 80%. The arrangements for the practical exam have not yet been entirely decided upon, and will be announced as soon as classes begin. For students who must sit the exam a second time, only the exam score will be counted.
Work placement(s) :
Organizational remarks :
Contacts :
Students will find all the support they might want at the library of life sciences (BSV): it can be accessed through the escalator on the university hospital's -1 level, next to the polyclinic registration desks. Teachers: Dr Françoise PASLEAU Bibliothèque des Sciences de la Vie, CHU, B-34. Phone: +32 4 366 2180 E-mail: f.pasleau@ulg.ac.be Secretariat: Véronique LIMBOURG, Bibliothèque des Sciences de la Vie, CHU, B-34. Phone: +32 4 366 9031 E-mail: veronique.limbourg@ulg.ac.be For urgent problems or questions calling for a brief answer, students should use the ULg's e-mail service, while taking care to follow the basic rules of professional e-mail etiquette. However, for more in-depth questions that require a certain amount of explanation, it is best to make an appointment with the teacher. Students can also refer to the library desk staff for questions on how to use information retrieval tools.