Welcome to OTseeker
OTseeker is a database that contains abstracts of thousands of systematic reviews, randomised controlled trials and other resources relevant to occupational therapy interventions. It is designed to help occupational therapists use research evidence about occupational therapy interventions to inform their practice by quickly locating it.
Research evidence relevant to occupational therapy has been retrieved from over 1,000 different journals and has been located by comprehensive searches across numerous bibliographic databases. Surveys of people using OTseeker have indicated that having research relevant to occupational therapy interventions in one resource has improved their ability to locate research evidence quickly (Bennett et al 2007).
Further, most trials (published prior to July 2013) have been critically appraised for their internal validity (risk of bias) and interpretability. Information about the critical appraisal details completed for each trial is also accessible in the database. Given the rapid increase in the number of randomised controlled trials being published relevant to occupational therapy, in the future it will not be possible for the OTseeker team to rate all new trials that are entered into the database. However, we will seek to provide enhanced resources for therapists to be able to rate trials themselves and provide ratings for some trials where possible.
In addition to the main database, OTseeker includes the following key resources:
The “Implementing Evidence in Practice” Resource explains processes to help overcome research-practice gaps (this process is sometimes referred to as knowledge translation). It also contains a series of informative podcast interviews with clinicians and researchers about how they implemented evidence into practice.
The “Injury Management Resource” was designed to help occupational therapists to to locate research about injury management. The research that is indexed in this resource includes systematic reviews and randomised controlled trials, but also research about assessments, long term outcomes, clinical guidelines and qualitative research relevant to occupational therapists working in injury management.
New resources will continue to be added to OTseeker as it evolves.
To find out more about OTseeker please click on the link to research conducted about this website.
Who manages the OTseeker database?
A team of four people are currently responsible for maintaining the OTseeker database. The team includes occupational therapists from two Australian universities:
University of Queensland (School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences):
- Dr Sally Bennett (OTseeker Manager)
- Dr Leigh Tooth
- Dr Tammy Hoffmann (also Centre for Research in Evidence-Based Practice, Bond University)
The University of Sydney
How is OTseeker funded?
To date OTseeker has been developed and maintained with generous funding from the Motor Accidents Authority of New South Wales, Occupational Therapy Australia, and The Occupational Therapists Board of Queensland. Some additional funding has been provided by The College of Occupational Therapists (UK) and the Canadian Occupational Therapy Association. Infrastructure has been provided from the University of Queensland, The University of Sydney, and the University of Western Sydney.
See more information about our supporters on the Acknowledgements page. To enable OTseeker to remain available as a free resource, we are currently seeking financial support. Any organisation or individual interested in providing funding to support the ongoing maintenance of OTseeker is encouraged to contact the OTseeker project manager (details on Contacts page).
Bennett, S., McKenna, K., Hoffmann, T., Tooth, L., McCluskey, A., & Strong, J. (2007). The value of an evidence database for occupational therapists: an international online survey. Int J Med Inform, 76(7), 507-513. doi: S1386-5056(06)00043-8 [pii]
10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2006.02.005