OUR SERVICES
Unfortunately, to date, a large
number of studies investigating
the effetcs of therapeutic riding
including hippotherapy and the
use of horses in special
education and psychology have
produced clinical, but not
statistically significant changes,
or cannot be taken for reliable
evidence for other reasons. This
is because of any one, or a
combination of the following
shortfalls:
* inappropriate study design
* inappropriate number of
study participants
* inappropriate outcome measures
* inappropriate statistical tests.
This is very frustrating for clinicians, as they
see the benefits of the therapeutic use of
horses with their clients, yet they cannot
provide evidence of these benefits. This lack of
good evidence may affect funding decisions
and, ultimately, people’s quality of life.
Getting research design and methodology right
makes the difference between being able to
demonstrate the effectiveness of an
intervention or not.
Dorothée Debuse has considerable expertise
not only in hippotherapy practice, but also in
research. She gained her doctorate with a five-
year research study on the effects of
hippotherapy on people with cerebral palsy.
Her work at Northumbria University involves a
lot of post-graduate research supervision. She
is also regularly involved in the university’s
Research Ethics review process, and is on the
editorial board of a new international journal on
the therapeutic use of horses for people. She
also is a reviewer for the International Journal
for Therapy and Rehabilitation.
She now combines her general expertise in
research methodology and design with her
specific knowledge and interest in hippotherapy
and more general therapeutic riding to provide a
consultancy service to those wishing to research
the effects of therapeutic riding interventions.
As for hippotherapy in practice, Dorothée’s
expertise clearly includes hippotherapy practice
and theory, as well as therapeutic-riding specific
training and schooling of horses. She has also
got a lot of experience of different hippotherapy
set-ups, in terms of riding arena structure and
lay-out and different designs of mounting facilities
and their integration into “normal” riding arenas.
Due to her good connections to many
physiotherapists practising hippotherapy and
therapeutic riding throughout Europe and beyond
she is also able to facilitate contacts.
Dorothée was invited to teach on a two-day
workshop on hippotherapy and therapeutic riding
related horse training in Norway in March 2010,
and she has an open invitation to teach in Japan.
In April a from Sweden visited us to learn from
our practice and experience, and Dorothée is
likely to be asked to advise one budding
hippotherapy project in Sweden as part of the
LEADER programme.
For an informal discussion of how she may be
able to help you and your organisation, please
International Practice and Research Consultancy
Horse Power for Ability is the trade name of Horses for Health CLG. We are a not-for-profit organisation. Chair: Dr Dorothee Debuse
Registered office: Heather Lodge, Edlingham, Alnwick, Northumberland, NE66 2BL, UK. Tel: 01665-574727
