Woldenberg, Corey The Impact of Clinical Education on Student Physical Therapists' Attitudes, Beliefs, and Knowledge of Chronic Pain. 2024. Radford University, Doctoral Capstone Project. Radford University Scholars' Repository.
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Abstract
Chronic pain is a complex and costly condition requiring a team-based, biopsychosocial approach for optimal management. Physical therapists are an integral part of this treatment team, yet the literature shows that physical therapists may not hold sufficient knowledge of pain science nor optimally adhere to a biopsychosocial approach. These suboptimal attitudes, beliefs, and knowledge may start in pre-professional education, as entry-level physical therapy curricula have been shown not to provide sufficient pain education. Experiential learning theory suggests increased exposure to learning opportunities with patients experiencing chronic pain would optimize skill and knowledge acquisition. Clinical education is the primary mode of experiential learning for physical therapy students; however, there is a paucity of research on how clinical education impacts pain knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs. Objectives: The purpose of the proposed study was to examine the effect of exposure to patients with chronic pain during clinical education rotations on U.S. physical therapy students’ attitudes, beliefs, and knowledge of chronic pain management. Method: This study used a nonexperimental, correlational, pretest-posttest design using the Revised Neurophysiology of Pain Questionnaire and the Health Care Providers’ Pain and Impairment Scale to examine changes in attitudes, beliefs, and knowledge of chronic pain around individual clinical education rotations. Results: The survey collected 97 completed responses, from which only 16 matched pre/post-clinical rotation pairings were identified. A mixed model analysis of data yielded results that were not statistically significant and no null hypotheses were rejected except for a moderate, positive linear relationship between CI board certification and students’ pain knowledge. Conclusion: This study supports the findings of prior research indicating that attitudes, beliefs, and knowledge improve as students progress through entry-level curriculum, but questions remain regarding the impact of clinical education specifically. Additional research is needed in this arena.
| Item Type: | Doctoral Capstone Project |
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| Subjects: | R Medicine > R Medicine (General) |
| Divisions: | Radford University > Waldron College of Health and Human Services > Health Sciences Program |
| Date Deposited: | 03 Jun 2024 23:48 |
| Last Modified: | 03 Jun 2024 23:48 |
| URI: | http://wagner.radford.edu/id/eprint/1119 |
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