| Year Funded: 2012 | Budget: $88,085 | Funding Agency: WCB Manitoba |
|---|---|---|
| Title: | Clinical Decision Support Tools for Managing Disabling Musculoskeletal Disorders | |
| Category: | Occupational Disease, Injury and Health Services | |
| Subcategory: | Occupational Injury | |
| Keywords: | scoping review, clinical decision making tools, musculoskeletal disorders | |
| Link to research website: | http://www.wcb.mb.ca/research-and-workplace-innovation-projects | |
Issue:
Pain-related musculoskeletal disorders, such as back, neck or arm pain, are very common reasons for work loss. Previous systematic reviews of CDS tools have focused on the evaluation of medical management and included only randomized controlled trials from the health care literature. The current literature is diverse, fragmented with inconsistencies in terminology and methods. The scoping review would examine the extent, range and nature of the existing body of knowledge and would provide a synthesis and summary of all knowledge in this area for use by practitioners. It is an emerging field of research, and the immediate impact of the proposed work lies in the summary of the current state of the knowledge-base in this field to direct future research.
Objectives:
The scoping review would investigate computer-based CDS, other available CDS tools such as algorithms, care pathways, guidelines, rules and models, and examine the existing knowledge-base in health care, computer science and business management to undertake the following tasks:
1. Summarize key concepts and terminology to provide criteria for future reporting;
2. Inventory all available CDS tools; and
3. Evaluate and synthesize evidence of the effectiveness and utility of the available tools.
Anticipated Results:
This work has the potential to impact the ability of health care providers to provide patient-specific recommendations for interventions that are most likely to lead to functional recovery.
Investigators:
Douglas Gross, Associate Professor, University of Alberta
