Student Perception of the Impact of Differeing Learning Environments on Clinical Prepardness
Purpose:
As a form of program assessment, faculty of a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program conducted surveys over two successive years to determine student's perception of their preparedness to manage patients in a variety of settings during the first long clinical experience (LCE). Eleven different physical therapy skills were included in the survey. Additionally, students were asked to rate the impact of three learning environments on their perception of preparedness: Didactic, Simulation Lab (SL), and Practicums/short clinical experiences (SCE).
Methods/Description:
Subjects: Third Year DPT students from graduating classes of 2018 and 2019.
Students completed the survey within the first two-weeks of their first LCE. Section one of the survey requested the predominant setting of the experience (e.g. Outpatient Orthopedic, Inpatient Acute). Section two requested rating the perception of preparedness in the eleven skills using a 5-point Likert scale from “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.” Relative frequency of “strongly agree” or “agree" was calculated. Section three requested a percentage rating of the effects of the three learning environments on their perceived level of preparedness.
Fifty-five students (80%) of the graduating class of 2018 and fifty seven students (90%) of the graduating class of 2019 completed the survey.
Results/Outcomes:
Clinical Settings: Settings of practice were identified by students as follows:
Out Patient Orthopedics-51%; Inpatient Acute-21%; Inpatient/Outpatient Rehabilitation-11%, Skilled Nursing Facility/Long-term Care Hospital-13%; Other (including Pediatrics)-4%
Student perception in overall level of preparedness for the graduating class of 2018 was 72.7%, and 74.4% for 2019.
Student perception of preparedness for each skill as an average between both cohorts was as follows:
Gait Training /Wheelchair Mobility 92.0%; Transfer Training 82.1%; Therapeutic Exercise or Activities 83.9%; Patient/Caregiver education 81.3%; Bed Mobility 82.1%; Tests and Measures 78.6%; Clinical Reasoning 79.5%; Patient/Caregiver Interview 67.9%; Patient Progression/Plan of Care Modification 64.3%; Chart Review/Systems Review 58.0%; DME/Orthotic Use and Fitting 35.7%.
Student perception of preparedness by learning environment (top 3 skills) was as follows:
Didactic: DME/Orthotic Use and Fitting, Tests and Measures, Clinical Reasoning/Therapeutic exercise.
SL: Bed Mobility, Transfer Training, Gait Training/Wheelchair Mobility.
SCE: Chart/System Reviews, Patient/Caregiver Interview, Patient Progression/Plan of Care Modification,
Conclusions/Relevance to the conference theme:
The surveys indicate a similar perception between students of the two cohorts for overall level of preparedness per skill and environment that most impacted the development of each skill.
The results strongly suggest that multiple learning environments are needed for developing student clinical preparedness. It also provides valuable program feedback regarding curriculum effectiveness and opportunities for further development