Abstract
BackgroundEvidence-based healthcare (EBHC) principles are essential knowledge for patient and consumer (“consumer”) engagement as research and research implementation stakeholders. The aim of this study was to assess whether participation in a free, self-paced online course affects confidence in explaining EBHC topics. The course comprises six modules and evaluations which together take about 6 h to complete.MethodsConsumers United for Evidence-based Healthcare (CUE) designed, tested and implemented a free, online course for consumers, Understanding Evidence-based Healthcare: A Foundation for Action (“Understanding EBHC”). The course is offered through the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Participants rated their confidence in explaining EBHC topics on a scale of 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest), using an online evaluation provided before accessing the course (“Before”) and after (“After”) completing all six course modules. We analyzed data from those who registered for the course from May 31, 2007 to December 31, 2018 (n = 15,606), and among those persons, the 11,522 who completed the “Before” evaluation and 4899 who completed the “After” evaluation. Our primary outcome was the overall mean of within-person change (“overall mean change”) in self-reported confidence levels on EBHC-related topics between “Before” and “After” evaluations among course completers. Our secondary outcomes were the mean within-person change for each of the 11 topics (mean change by topic).ResultsFrom May 31, 2007 to December 31, 2018, 15,606 individuals registered for the course: 11,522 completed the “Before” evaluation, and 4899 of these completed the “After” evaluation (i.e., completed the course). The overall mean change in self-reported confidence levels (ranging from 1 to 5) from the “Before” to “After” evaluation was 1.27 (95% CI, 1.24–1.30). The mean change by topic ranged from 1.00 (95% CI, 0.96–1.03) to 1.90 (95% CI, 1.87–1.94).ConclusionThose who seek to involve consumer stakeholders can offer Understanding EBHC as a step toward meaningful consumer engagement. Future research should focus on long-term impact assessment of online course such as ours to understand whether confidence is retained post-course and applied appropriately.
Highlights
What is evidence-based healthcare and why is it important?(2) Ask
“How to find research articles using PubMed (MEDL INE)” had the lowest mean change and the highest mean “before accessing the course (Before)” confidence level (3.05)
Confidence levels in Evidence-based healthcare (EBHC) (Table 3) Most course completers felt moderately confident in their knowledge of EBHC in the “Before” (3054/4819 [63.4%]) and “After” (3310/4819 [68.7%]) evaluations
Summary
What is evidence-based healthcare and why is it important?(2) Ask. The importance of research questions in evidence-based healthcare;(3) Align. Evidence-based healthcare (EBHC) principles are essential knowledge for patient and consumer (“consumer”) engagement as research and research implementation stakeholders. Patients and consumers (“consumers”) are increasingly valued as stakeholders in research and research implementation, such as when determining study design, performing grant review and developing systematic reviews and clinical practice guidelines [1,2,3,4,5,6,7]. One purported obstacle to consumer engagement is that consumers lack scientific background [4, 22] This criticism may include lack of knowledge about evidencebased healthcare (EBHC), defined by the Joanna Briggs Institute as “decision-making that considers the feasibility, appropriateness, meaningfulness and effectiveness of healthcare practices” [23,24,25,26]
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