Evidence Based Practice as a Form of Quantitative Research

Evidence Based Practice is the combination of clinical expertise, patient values, and the best research evidence into the decision making process for patient care. (Sackett D, 1996). In the pre-hospital setting patient care can be explained as thoughtful consideration, interpretation and implementation of evidence based data which enables clinicians to treat patients with paramount care. (Ingersoll 2000). This essay will follow the critique framework developed by Caldwell et al (2005). It critically analyses a quantitative research article by O’Keefe et al (2010), investigating the survival rates associated with differing ambulance response times for out of hospital cardiac arrests.

Griffiths (2012) states that the title should be as short as possible but should contain what the paper is about, including the design of the study undertaken. Additionally (Blaxter 2010) states a title for research needs to be short and direct the attention of the reader onto significant aspects. The title is relevant to the research undergone highlighting the ambulance response times in the survival of patients with OHCA however, the title contains fourteen words arguing it is not short. Conversely Sackett et al (1997) state a robust title should include the PICO (Population, Intervention, Comparison and Outcome) formula. The patients are clearly identified as patients who experienced OHCA. However, there is no reference to any intervention or comparison. The outcome investigates the survival of patients, only up until hospital discharge.

Receiver judgments of communicator trustworthiness and especially expertise are found to be significantly influenced by information concerning the communicator's occupation, training, amount of expertise and the like (Hurwitz et al 1992). With no prior knowledge of the data collector, students would have had no experience from which to judge their credibility or trustworthiness. Although none of the authors are paramedics, they do have a background in emergency medicine making them credible authors. O’Keefe and Nicholl have had a number of national research studies published in the field of pre-hospital and emergency care and continue to have articles published, two articles recently published in 2017 at the University of Sheffield. Varkevisser et al (2003) believe that summarising the key aspects in the abstract of an article is crucial due to allowing the reader to do a systematic comparison of different articles. The abstract states key components such as OHCA and the response times however does not mention how they were sampled or mention the survival rates of patients in correlation with ambulance response times.

The rationale is clearly defined in this research article by trying to improve patient outcomes for OHCA by investigating ambulance response times. Bettany-Saltikov (2012) state that authors should clearly present their rationale for research, emphasising any prior knowledge of the topic. The authors highlight the variation of survival rates from other countries worldwide further indicating to the reader the justification for undertaking the research. Woodside et al (2009) add that a clear rationale in a piece of quantitative research is vital for a good design in order to assess the variables. The title directly mentions survival rates and goes into further detail in the abstract with percentage rates of patients that were discharged giving the reader a clear impression of the rationale of the article. The literature review should provide sufficient understanding of the current theories and current bases of understanding. It should provide evidence to suggest the research question being studied is important and relevant. (Ross 2012). O’Keefe et al cite from twenty-six research articles and at time of publication in 2010 the majority were over five years old, one article dating back to 1990. The article mentions studies from seventeen different countries but only going into detail for two of these which is insufficient for a comprehensive study.

Emanuel et al (2000) state that most important factors in ethics is the ability to improve health by means of research trials. Within this audit they assessed PRFs over a five year period to see if response times affected the outcome of OHCA. The authors have shown clear intentions, intending to help improve the treatment of patients in cardiac arrest. (REF quote about ethical issues and consent) The issue of gaining consent does not necessarily apply within audits, as Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2001 states that confidential data can be used without the consent of the participants where work such as clinical audits is being undertaken in order to improve patient care. O’Keefe et al have chosen to present their findings using a quantitative method. Creswell (2003) states that quantitative research has the benefits of being conclusive, absolute and having concrete, pre-determined questions allowing for precise comparison. They have used tables and graphs to present their findings, the data is reliable, if research were carried out again similar results would be found. This therefore reduces the likelihood of bias. O’Keefe et al have clearly identified a study design in their article. They describe how they collected data from ambulance services annually for a period of five years, making this a retrospective cohort study.

O’Keefe et al do not use an experimental hypothesis in this particular study. Marczyk et al (2005) state that an experimental hypothesis is predominantly used within quantitative research that has a control group and an experimental group. There is no control group. It would be immoral to experiment on patients having a cardiac arrest, making this non-experimental therefore there is no need for an experimental hypothesis. Kothari (2004) states that identifying key variables within a study are fundamental because the results of the study are often observing, measuring and describing the relationship between two or more variables and that not identifying them can render the study. O Keefe et al identifies key variables such as place that the arrest occurred, whether by stander CPR was performed and the age of the patient. The study population needs to offer a clear definition as to who belongs to the study population and who should be excluded. The population is clearly identified as 1161 patients who have had a cardiac arrest while out of hospital. Although attempted resuscitation was on 1258 patients they did not include 80 patients who suffered a non- cardiac related cardiac arrest for example traumatic cardiac arrests in accordance with the Utstein style. Participants were recruited from four ambulance services however it does not state the geographical location of these questioning is it reflective of the population as a whole. It is however not relevant to the aims of the study.

The results are presented clearly with sub-headings describing the effect of each variable on survival rates. The authors use charts and graphs to clarify the data in a way that is easily understandable and appropriate to the quantitative nature of the study. Fain (2013) states that results need to be presented transparently and accurately which the authors achieved. An audit was a good method for collecting data. It evaluates how well current practice is being carried out and where there is room for improvements to ensure the best care for patients. The question asked in the title if whether response times affect survival rates of out of hospital cardiac arrests is not answered in the discussion section, it focuses more on ethics, sampling and different relevant studies is lacking and not sufficient to be comprehensive. Melynyk and Fineout-Overholt, (2015) state that generalisability can be defined as being able to generalise results from a research population and apply those results to the wider population. In this article the population is elderly, aged over 60 and the authors do not state which parts of the country the research data was obtained from therefore arguing the results are not generalizable.

Conclusion

In conclusion, O’Keefe et al completed research on the role of ambulance response times.