E-OTD students partner with Shirley Ryan AbilityLab to maintain rehabilitation measures database
Introduction
For most students pursuing advanced degrees in occupational therapy, it may be several years before their names appear in a peer-reviewed journal or professional publication. Once these students become licensed and registered occupational therapists, some may find themselves so immersed in the day-to-day demands of clinical practice that publication feels out of reach. That is not the case at UIC, where entry-level occupational therapy doctoral students have the opportunity to become published authors before they graduate, providing them with a tangible advantage early in their careers.
As part of the Research Foundations for Evidence-based Practice course series, E-OTD students get to work with the Center for Rehabilitation Outcomes Research at Chicago's Shirley Ryan AbilityLab, regarded as the nation’s top rehabilitation hospital for 36 consecutive years. Students help refresh standardized measurement summaries used in rehabilitation practice by updating the CROR’s Rehabilitation Measures Database, a compilation of more than 600 measurement instruments.
By the end of the course, E-OTD students will have their names listed as authors on measurement summaries in the RMD, an achievement that can be cited on their resumes or at professional conferences.
“It is a valuable way to bring standardized measurement to life and make it meaningful for our students as future occupational therapists,” said PT assistant professor Sabrin Rizk, who leads the measurement science module of the course. “From the outset, I tell students this is a real and unique opportunity to see their names as authors on a non-refereed publication, and I encourage them to take ownership of their work and aim for a level of quality they can genuinely be proud of.”
Maya Smith, an E-OTD student, took Rizk’s course last year. The class of 40 students was divided into 10 groups, and Smith’s cohort was tasked with updating the Minnesota Manual Dexterity Test. The timed test asks subjects to place or turn 60 black and red disks on a board using either one or both hands.
“Occupational therapists use it to assess motor skills, and there’s also a cognitive aspect, because people have to listen to what’s being asked of them,” Smith explained.
Smith and her group analyzed several studies involving the MMDT. They found that although the test could be administered to individuals who had experienced a stroke or traumatic brain injury, it was most commonly used with people diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, a degenerative neurological condition that affects manual coordination, among other functions.
Smith’s group reviewed the literature to understand how standardized assessments like the MMDT are used. They described the instrument, reported key features like reliability and validity, then determined that the MMDT provides an accurate measure of manual coordination and is strongly correlated to daily task performance, making it particularly relevant for real-world functioning.
“I really liked the assignment because it was the first time we could put what we learned about research into practice,” Smith said. “It was a great way for us to use what we’ve learned and turn it into something tangible that will be used by rehabilitation clinicians.”
During the course, Smith and her fellow students drafted a new summary of the MMDT. Rizk reviewed their work and provided feedback, which the students incorporated before submitting a final version to CROR for further review. After the students’ summaries are published on the RMD, they also are shared on CROR’s Facebook and LinkedIn accounts. The learning process continues in the next course in the Research Foundations series, where students create infographics about the measures, using clear language so clinicians, patients and care partners can also understand the information.
“It is a great help to have the students update the measure summaries for the RMD,” said CROR project coordinator Kevin Fearn. “They perform the literature search, review the journal articles and extract the relevant psychometric data. Sometimes during this process, students discover that there has been an update to the measure that we were not aware of.”
In addition to UIC, CROR works with 15 other universities around the country, including Columbia University in New York and the University of Washington in Seattle.
“Having OT graduate students update summaries on the RMD has been a tremendous asset to CROR,” said CROR director Allen Heinemann. “Their involvement has brought fresh perspectives and a high level of professionalism to the work, ensuring the information is both current and accurate. The quality of the student contributions has consistently been impressive.”
Last October, Smith saw the payoff for her hard work. She had the opportunity to present the revised summary of the MMDT at the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine in Chicago. The annual gathering draws thousands of rehabilitation researchers from around the world, many with decades of experience. “I felt both excited and nervous going into the presentation,” said Smith. “That made the experience especially meaningful and rewarding.”
This article was edited for length and clarity by Emily Parenti-Lopez.