A Model of Clinician-Researcher Collaboration in a Community Setting: Conducting and Evaluating Clinical Research in a Multidisciplinary Community based Paediatric Rehabilitation Setting

This chapter discusses a model of involving clinicians in producing and evaluating the research evidence; a clinician – researcher collaboration that was utilized in a community - based paediatric rehabilitation setting with specific examples from speech and language therapy (SLT). Novita Children’s Services, South Australia (Novita, formerly known as Crippled Children’s Association of SA Inc., established in 1939) is a non-government, community-based organization that provides services to children with physical disabilities. Novita’s services include therapy, equipment and family support, and we assist over 1300 children with physical and severe multiple disabilities or acquired brain injury and their families annually. Children assisted by Novita have cerebral palsy (approximately 65%), muscular dystrophy, spina bifida, Rett syndrome, or other conditions that result in a permanent physical disability. Novita employs family service co-ordinators, occupational therapists, orthotists, physiotherapists, psychologists, rehabilitation engineers and SLTs, totalling around 150 staff. Typically services are delivered in clients’ homes, kindergartens and schools, or in community settings by multidisciplinary teams of therapists from five office sites in the Adelaide metropolitan area. Staff also visit one or more rural/country areas to support families and local service providers.