Validation Case Report

As a form of action research, validation case studies are prospectively developed to explore the best available evidence as it is integrated in clinical practice. The clinician should explore the literature for a meta-analysis or systematic review published in the past 5 years (at the time of implementation) and identify the best practice suggestions concluded from the study. Following the identification and integration of the level 1 evidence, the athletic trainer should integrate the best practice recommendations into practice on a measureable scale or patient population of interest as identified in the review. Outcome measures relevant to clinical practice should be used to monitor and assess the patients throughout the continuum of the best practice integration. The validation period may differ in time from a course of injury to an athletic season, but should relate to the recommendations suggested in the review. The goal of the outcomes developed from the validation period is to best understand the translation of evidence-based practice into practice-based evidence.

Template: To download the fillable template for a Case Validation Report please follow the link below: Case Validation Report Template. 

Title: The phrase “A Validation Case Study/Report” should follow the content and focus of the title (e.g. Balance Training to Prevent Ankle Sprains in Secondary School Soccer Players: A Validation Case Report). Titles should be no longer than 15 words and the heading “title” does not need to appear in the submission.

Content Focus: All submissions will be required to designate an Athletic Training Research Agenda Priority. The Athletic Training Research Agenda can be found here. The research priorities are Health Care Competency, Vitality of The Profession, Health Professions Education, Health Care Economics, and Health Information Technology.

Abstract: A 300-word unstructured abstract should accompany your submission. The abstract should include the citation for the reference article, objective statement of the validation, and a brief summary of the patient population, timeline, implementation, outcomes, and clinical take-home message.

Video Abstract (Optional): A Video Abstract is an accompanying feature for research articles that should attract viewers to the scientific paper. The aim of the Video Abstract is to promote the highlights of your study. Therefore, it should include the main conclusions and results of the paper, but it should also add something to the written paper. Ideally, it should engage viewers by telling a story, for example by starting with a particular finding, a question, or a distinctive topic around which the story will unfold. Your emphasis must be on ways of capturing the attention of your audience, encouraging them to read your paper. The video can be recorded using any software and should be under 2 minutes in length. The video may include voice-over presentation, podcast, and video capture. The video abstracts will be posted on the manuscript homepage and social media.

Article Citation and Summary: Provide a 200-300 brief summary of the key findings from a recent (published within past 5 years) systematic review and/or meta-analysis related to the field of athletic training on which the validation is based upon.

Objective: Describe the purpose of the validation as it relates to your clinical practice.

Patient Population: Provide details regarding the patient population (number of patients who are receiving the intervention) and clinical setting to best understand the patients receiving the key findings.

Intervention: Summarize the therapeutic interventions (e.g. pharmacological, surgical, rehabilitation, preventative, holistic, alternative, self-care, etc.), timeline, modes or settings of intervention, and changes in intervention implemented as referenced from the systematic review and/or meta-analysis. In addition, if comparisons are being used in clinical practice (previous evidence versus new evidence), please provide reference and context to the comparator.

Main Findings: This section will include information as it relates to the measurements from the systematic review and/or meta-analysis that are clinically relevant. For example, if the reference article examined functional changes after the implementation of certain rehabilitation exercises, this section should use the same or similar functional outcome measures including both patient-reported and clinician-rated measures. This may or may not include a sophisticated statistical analysis, but should include tables and interpretations of changes. Consider using meaningful detectable change and individual change scores.

Discussion: Summarize the findings of the implementation of the reference article as it relates to quality of care and effectiveness. In addition, describe challenges, barriers, and facilitators to implementation of the best available evidence into clinical practice in your athletic training facility. This may be referenced through budget, compliance, or other factors relevant to your specific experience.

Clinical Bottom Line: Provide a synthesis of the findings as it pertains to the clinical presentation and clinical relevance. Discuss the implications of this case report in terms of turning evidence-based practice into practice-based evidence. 

Patient Perspective (Optional): When possible and appropriate, the patient should share their perspective of the interventions they received as it relates back to the intervention and best available evidence. This section can be written in the form of quotations from patients regarding their experience, treatment, prognosis, and goals. This is a standalone section and should not be embedded within the previous sections. This is a standalone section and should not be embedded within the previous sections.

References: List all references used to support the case at the conclusion of the column. Please adhere to AMA guidelines.