Introduction
For optimum patient care, it is important to rely on well-researched work so as to obtain reliable evidence to assist in making an optimal decision on the anticipated method to be used by the patient. Evidence-based practice incorporates studies that have been extensively and adequately carried out by skilled researchers on patient's circumstances, values, and outcomes regarding a technique under consideration. However, the studies differ considerably on their credibility and quality because of the difference in researchers' knowledge and skills. Tasso's case study will be used in the essay to summarize the important evidence-based practice phase of critical review, to ensure that the best evidence available is used to answer the Tasso's question: what experiences do men with post-traumatic disorder get when taking yoga as a treatment option to improve their current status? The essay will critically examine quantitative and qualitative research to establish their reliability and rigor, through identification of the main study aims, design, evaluation of authorship and findings. The essay will then scrutinize the barriers to implantation of evidence and come up with a conclusion regarding the article that responds best to Tasso's question (Johnston, Minami, Greenwald, Reinhard & Khalsa, 2015).
Strengths and Limitations of the study
According to the study the researcher's strengths and limitations outlined as follows. The strength include; authors use of randomly selected sample to represent the population which increased the accuracy of the study, the participants in the study were not homogeneous but represented the diversity of the population, the use of primary information obtained directly from participant improves the accuracy and reliability of the data when it comes to making conclusion of the study, use of randomized control trial to improve the efficacy of yoga among the participants and data collection methods used by the researcher provided a consistent and precise data for the study (West, Liang & Spinazzola, 2017). There is no identifiable conflict of interest in the case study. The research was approved and funded by the university’s office of research and ethics. Author's limitations include; the yoga intervention did not consider a long period of follow-up to access whether it has a long-term effect on the participants, the result of the study was greatly influenced by yoga group attrition, the size of the sample was small which impaired the extent of generalization for the study, the control group was inactive hence test of yoga to the participant was almost a mere speculation and lastly, there was no consideration of physiological, ethnic and gender variables of the population which are major aspects of the study (Jindani & Khalsa, 2015).
Research questions
Research questions assist the researcher to outline the objectives, aims, and goals of the research. The research questions are significant because they help the researcher to be major on the important events as they undertake the research hence giving the general view of the study. Due to the unique challenges related to post-traumatic stress disorder the researcher carried out a study to find out whether yoga class could be used to address these challenges effectively. The relevant research questions for this essay include; does undertaking of yoga improve the wellbeing of people who have post-traumatic stress disorder? What are the alternative methods available for the patients to use? How efficient is the use of yoga compared to other methods of improving the wellbeing of post-traumatic stress disorder? Are there any side effects of undertaking or joining yoga classes? And how long should the patient attend the yoga class to improve the current condition?. The post-traumatic disorder is a threat to the people who have hard, tragic experiences in their life like Tasso who had an accident because it interferes with his wellbeing. Therefore, this made it necessary for research to be undertaken to come up with solutions for this challenge (Martin, Dick, Scioli-Salter & Mitchell, 2015).
Research design
A research design is a methodology that the researcher uses to carry out research. The research that is being appraised is a primary study. For the researcher to come up with reasonable and reliable findings, he needs to apply a suitable research design. The researcher used an action research design where there is understanding of the problem, and a care plan is developed as a form of intervention. Relevant observations are made while the interventions are carried out and new strategies designed by the researcher. A sample of 80 individuals was randomized to represent the population for the study. The researcher acknowledged that inviting patients to try yoga intervention was significant in establishing the effectiveness of the method. The research design selected was suitable for the study because the research sought to establish whether the application of yoga classes was helpful to the patient and not to test theories. This research design is based on experimentation to come up with a conclusion for the study (Lewis, 2015).
Research methods
Research methods entail data collection techniques, methods used to select sample, and data analysis techniques. The method selected for the study depends solely on nature and type of research that is undertaken. The researcher used a random selection sampling method to select the sample to represent the population. In this sampling technique, individuals are picked randomly from the population without following any procedure. The strength of this technique is that every individual in the population has an equal chance to be picked during sampling hence there is no discrimination or biases when selecting the sample (Taylor, Bogdan & DeVault, 2015). The limitation of this method is that individuals with similar attributes may be picked hence interfering with the outcomes of the study because the sample does not fully represent the population. The researcher used questionnaires to collect data from the participants. The data collection method is easy to use. However, the method is relatively costly to administer and sometimes the respondents may not give accurate data thus impairing the findings of the study. The data analysis method used in the study was the analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) that utilizes pretest scores to control group differences. The technique is significant in establishing the differences between the available method of regulating post-traumatic stress disorder (Stokes, Davis & Koch, 2012).
Results of the research
The findings of the revealed that the use of yoga as an intervention for improving the wellbeing of patient post-traumatic stress disorder was effective and efficient. The patients who used yoga intervention had a slightly higher improvement in the outcome compared to those who used other methods. This means that it is more appropriate for men with post-traumatic stress disorder like Tasso to use yoga as an intervention to improve his conditions (Neville & Cole, 2013). The study suggests that the patient becomes more aware of his emotions and thought when he feels calmer. However, yoga interventions seem more appealing to one patient than to the other which is a disadvantage for its use. The limitations of the study include; reduction in number of participants during the study affected the results of the research, the sample used in the study was relatively small which necessitated replication in order to come up with a conclusion, the study was carried out for a short period thus long-term effect of the intervention could not be determined, and lastly the control group was inactive therefore it was difficult to separate the impact of yoga intervention and the other available interventions (Dick, Niles, Street, DiMartino & Mitchell, 2014).
Conclusion
The research present important information that can be used in clinical practice as an intervention for a patient with post-traumatic stress disorder. The research was able to come up with reliable evidence that yoga intervention was efficient to be used by the patients. In the case study, it is essential for Tasso to join a yoga class to assist him in improving his wellbeing. Although the study concluded that yoga was an appropriate intervention for post-traumatic stress disorder, research that examines the effects of physiological, ethnic and gender on the intervention needs to be carried out (Gerbarg, 2013). Also, further studies need to be conducted to establish the mechanism behind the apparent effects of yoga and determine the benefits of yoga intervention on the mental health of the patient.
References
Dick, A. M., Niles, B. L., Street, A. E., DiMartino, D. M., & Mitchell, K. S. (2014). Examining mechanisms of change in a yoga intervention for women: The influence of mindfulness, psychological flexibility, and emotion regulation on PTSD symptoms. Journal of clinical psychology, 70(12), 1170-1182.
Gerbarg, P. L. (2013). Yoga and neuro-psychoanalysis. In Bodies In Treatment (pp. 149-172). Routledge.
Jindani, F. A., & Khalsa, G. S. (2015). A yoga intervention program for patients suffering from symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder: A qualitative descriptive study. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 21(7), 401-408. doi:10.1089/acm.2014.0262
Johnston, J. M., Minami, T., Greenwald, D., Li, C., Reinhardt, K., & Khalsa, S. B. S. (2015). Yoga for military service personnel with PTSD: A single arm study. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 7(6), 555.
Lewis, S. (2015). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches. Health promotion practice, 16(4), 473-475.
Martin, E. C., Dick, A. M., Scioli-Salter, E. R., & Mitchell, K. S. (2015). Impact of a yoga intervention on physical activity, self-efficacy, and motivation in women with PTSD symptoms. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 21(6), 327-332.
Neville, K., & Cole, D. A. (2013). The relationships among health promotion behaviors, compassion fatigue, burnout, and compassion satisfaction in nurses practicing in a community medical center. Journal of Nursing Administration, 43(6), 348-354.
Stokes, M. E., Davis, C. S., & Koch, G. G. (2012). Categorical data analysis using SAS. SAS institute.
Taylor, S. J., Bogdan, R., & DeVault, M. (2015). Introduction to qualitative research methods: A guidebook and resource. John Wiley & Sons.
West, J., Liang, B., & Spinazzola, J. (2017). Trauma sensitive yoga as a complementary treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder: A qualitative descriptive analysis. International journal of stress management, 24(2), 173.
