New graduate physiotherapists’ perceived preparedness for clinical practice. A cross-sectional survey

Abstract

Objectives:The study aimed to explore new United Kingdom (UK) graduate physiotherapists' perceived preparedness for clinical practice to provide valuable information to support curriculum development.Methods: An online, mixed method cross-sectional questionnaire was used. Newly qualified UK physiotherapists completed a survey, capturing how physiotherapy degrees prepared them for practice against 1) UK proficiency standards and 2) cross-discipline physiotherapy related clinical skills. Respondents were asked for reflections of their degree course including teaching and effectiveness. Data was converted into proportions with a 95% confidence interval. Likert scale questions were treated as numeric variables with the mean and standard deviation (SD) calculated for combined responses. Thematic analysis reported patterns of data extracted from open-ended questions.Results: Of a total of 376 respondents, 365 were included in data analysis. Overall respondents perceived that courses prepared them 'well' against 12 of the 15 standards, on a Likert scale of 1-5. Respondents reported that perceived competence was 'indifferent' for manual therapy skills (Mean 3.14 ± SD 1.13), red flag (3.45 ± 1.11) and clinical flag management (2.92 ± 1.16).Exercise prescription (2.42 ± 1.35), psychosocial skills (2.27 ± 1.23) and patient management (2.41 ± 1.12) were areas identified for further teaching focus. Placements were the preferred teaching method most applicable to practice followed by practical seminars. Conclusion:Respondents felt sufficiently prepared for practice against UK proficiency standards but not physiotherapy related clinical skills. Areas for curricula development included exercise prescription, psychology and pain management.

The paediatric physiotherapy curricula landscape: A survey of United Kingdom entry‐level programs

“…The quality of care delivered to children has previously been reported as suboptimal (Quinonez et al., 2013) and therefore alongside medical colleagues, it is seminal that physiotherapy graduates are able to promote high quality evidenced based care. In a survey of UK new graduate physiotherapists, students revealed that practice placements were the preferred teaching method most applicable to practice (Chesterton et al., 2021). Our study found that only 41% of institutions offered paediatric placements to students, and furthermore not all students were able to access these placements due to capacity.…”

“…The limited time allocation to paediatric content was also considered the greatest weakness of the Australian taught physiotherapy programs, despite no current best‐practice benchmark existing (Mistry et al., 2019)]. While a substantial amount of time of physiotherapy entry‐level programs are given to clinical skill development, UK students have identified a range of skills including exercise prescription, psychosocial understanding and patient management, as requiring further focus which currently do not prepare graduates for practice (Chesterton et al., 2021; O’Donoghue et al., 2011). Such research highlights the competing interests from all stakeholders to ensure that content is contemporary and prepares students for modern‐day healthcare practice.…”

“…Once qualified, chartered physiotherapists are acknowledged as autonomous professionals who can engage in patient care from a range of environments throughout the National Health Service (NHS) and Private, Independent, Voluntary Organisations (PIVO) making the achievement of core skills during education essential for patient safety (Cresswell et al., 2013). A key role of Higher Education Institutes (HEI) is to adequately prepare students with graduate ready skills (Chesterton et al., 2021; CSP, 2020), meeting the standards of proficiency relevant to the HCPC register (HCPC, 2018). Entry‐level programs are required to reflect physiotherapy core values, skills and knowledge while encompassing an evidence‐based approach relevant to contemporary practice.…”

“…This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made. (Chesterton et al, 2021;CSP, 2020), meeting the standards of proficiency relevant to the HCPC register (HCPC, 2018). Entry-level programs are required to reflect physiotherapy core values, skills and knowledge while encompassing an evidence-based approach relevant to contemporary practice.…”

From passenger to citizen—portraits of learning to be a physiotherapist

“…Physiotherapy education, and indeed health professional education generally, has often advanced that its main purpose is learner preparation and competency, despite a range of researchers highlighting the limitations (i.e. lacking clear meaning and shared understanding, narrow focus) of both (Atkinson & McIlroy, 2016 ; Barradell, 2017 ; Burford & Vance, 2014 ; Chesterton et al., 2021 ; Ottrey et al., 2021 ; Reeves et al., 2009 ; Zou et al., 2021 ). While the COVID‐19 pandemic was a catalyst to teach and work differently, especially with more use of technology through necessity, very few physiotherapy initiatives strayed from traditional profession‐bound experiences (Maric & Nicholls, 2020 ).…”