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Publication
Trends in physiotherapy education: retrospective analysis of ECPE congress abstracts
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Abstract(s)
Relevance: The last decade both physiotherapy and education faced many demands. Educators are challenged to show evidence and report their best practices. An overview of what has been the focus in the European Congress of Physiotherapy Education (ECPE) and the main areas of interest and developments in the European Higher Education area
could provide the opportunity to benchmark towards the policy statement of education of the World Confederation of Physical Therapy (WCPT), facilitating consistency and perhaps assisting in formulating a relevant research agenda for the future.
Purpose: The purpose of this study is to give an overview of the trends in physiotherapy education of the last decennium as it is presented at the conferences of the European Region of the World Confederation of Physical Therapy (ER-WCPT). Methods/analysis: A descriptive and retrospective study was carried out and qualitative and quantitative analysis was made on the basis of content and study design/methodology, by three independent reviewers of all abstracts presented at each of the three previous ECPE conferences of 2004 (Estoril – Portugal), 2008 (Stockholm – Sweden), 2012 (Vienna – Austria). Categories for content analyses were developed based on the distribution and main themes used in the conference. Results: A total of n = 350 abstracts were classified. The main topics were divided between ICT – Information Communication Technology, Education and Employment, Continuous Professional Development, Teaching and Learning, Clinical Education, Evidence Based Practice: Teaching and Learning, Clinical Reasoning, Innovation and Curriculum Development, Teaching in Specific Areas, Interdisciplinary. And considering different methodological approaches: Descriptive Studies; Analytical Observational and Experimental Studies; Reviews and Mixed Methods. Discussion and conclusions: This analysis was constrained by lack of transparency on the description of methodologies in the abstracts and also by the different organization of the abstract books. We needed to create a category “Information available doesn’t allow a classification” and make our decisions based on the rather classic distinction of qualitative and quantitative study types and methodology. From the results we can find an increase of total presentations from the first to the last conference. In all conference there is a clear preference for poster presentations and the qualitative studies are more favored. There is an overall increase in research and implementation research from the first conference to the last. Impact and implications: The next step could be a comparison with WCPT congress education related abstracts and the proceedings of educational networks like COHEHRE and ENPHE. This kind of reflection could help researchers and educators create a research agenda and build upon earlier work. It gives an incentive to the development of high quality methodologies. An overview of reports gives the opportunity to compare with published results and could challenge publishing criteria.