Perceptions of physiotherapy as a possible career choice among prospective university students in Nigeria

Abstract

Objectives This study was carried out to determine the preferences of students in selecting physiotherapy as a career choice and the factors that play key roles in their selection. Methods A cross-sectional study involving 297 subjects ranging from 14 to 21 years of age was conducted among prospective university students. They were recruited from seven secondary schools in selected local government areas of Lagos state using a purposive sampling technique. A 14-item questionnaire, comparing physiotherapy to 11 selected occupations on six dimensions, that is, level of physical stress, salary, usefulness to society, responsibility, social status, and personal recognition as well as investigating factors considered important in selecting a career, was adapted from relevant literature. The data was analysed using mean, standard deviation, and Kendall's coefficient of concordance. Results and discussion The responses of 184 males (62.0%) and 113 females (38.0%) were used in the data analysis of this study. Physiotherapy was ranked fourth in terms of level of physical stress, third in terms of salary, fifth in terms of usefulness, fourth in terms of responsibility, fourth in terms of social status, and fourth in terms of personal recognition. Overall, physiotherapy was rated as the fourth-most preferred occupation. Prospective university students perceived physiotherapy as having a high level of occupational prestige, rating it fourth after medicine, engineering, and law. Conclusions The profession of physiotherapy is held in high esteem and is seen as a desirable career choice among Nigerian high school students.

Perceived occupational prestige of physiotherapy in Nigeria among physiotherapy undergraduates: implication for public and healthcare professionals’ awareness of the role of physiotherapy

“…This is a self-administered questionnaire adapted from the 2018 Questionnaire on Occupational Prestige by Akodu et al [13] used in conducting the study "Perceptions of Physiotherapy as a possible career choice among prospective university students in Nigeria". The adapted questionnaire was content validated by a panel of three experts.…”

“…There seem to be some challenges and uncertainties in Nigeria about the professional image of the physiotherapy profession, resulting in unclear perceptions and poor knowledge of physiotherapy among the general public. Two studies have been conducted on the occupational prestige of physiotherapy in Nigeria among Nigerian physiotherapists [12] and secondary school students [13]. These studies report physiotherapy as an intermediate status among practising physiotherapists, ranking 5th among other professions but was seen as an occupation with high prestige among secondary school students.…”

Percepção de alunos ingressantes do curso de Fisioterapia sobre a profissão: estudo qualitativo

“…Porém, o conhecimento sobre a profissão voltou-se majoritariamente aos aspectos de reabilitação e/ou tratamento, indicando que as pessoas que precisam de atendimento fisioterapêutico possuem algum tipo de deficiência física, tiveram alguma lesão e/ou sofrem de algias músculo-esqueléticas (Carvalho & Caccia-Bava (2011); Ojeda et al,2009;Silva e Silveira (2011); Moraes, 2010). Research, Society and Development, v. 11, n. 11, e214111133482, 2022 (CC BY 4.0) | ISSN 2525-3409 | DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.33448/rsd-v11i11.33482 4 Akodu et al identificaram a avaliação de estudantes sobre diferentes áreas da saúde, considerando seis dimensões, a saber: nível percebido de estresse físico, salário, utilidade para a sociedade, responsabilidade, status social e reconhecimento pessoal (Akodu et al, 2018). Os participantes relataram que a fisioterapia apresenta um alto nível de estresse, responsabilidade e status social, reconhecimento pessoal se comparada às outras profissões da área da saúde pré selecionadas no estudo, estando abaixo nesses aspectos somente para profissão de Medicina.…”

“…Os participantes relataram que a fisioterapia apresenta um alto nível de estresse, responsabilidade e status social, reconhecimento pessoal se comparada às outras profissões da área da saúde pré selecionadas no estudo, estando abaixo nesses aspectos somente para profissão de Medicina. Notou-se que, a imagem social e a necessidade de criatividade foram aspectos pouco relevantes na avaliação dos participantes sobre a profissão, no entanto, relataram que a Fisioterapia possui remuneração alta, bem como alto nível de autoridade e autonomia, sendo aspectos importantes de classificação da profissão (Akodu et al, 2018).…”

“…Os estudos de Akodu et al e Fuente-Vidal et al investigaram e analisaram sobre a percepção dos alunos da graduação de fisioterapia de anos finais sobre o curso e o seu campo de atuação, bem como as perspectivas no mercado de trabalho, de maneira geral (Akodu et al, 2018;Fuente-vidal et al, 2021). Os resultados desses estudos sugerem que a fisioterapia está associada a um alto nível de prestígio ocupacional entre os participantes, com expectativa de bons salários, empregabilidade e múltiplas oportunidades de trabalho, além de o desejo de ajudar e cuidar dos outros ser o fator predominante na escolha de cursar a graduação (Akodu et al, 2018;Fuente-vidal et al, 2021).…”