Physiotherapy students are underprepared to work with people living with dementia: a qualitative study.
Physiotherapy
; 123: 47-55, 2024 06.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38271742
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES:
To 1) explore physiotherapy students' experience in caring for people with dementia; 2) develop a rich understanding of their perceived preparedness to work with people with dementia upon graduation; and 3) identify opportunities to improve dementia education from the perspectives of students.DESIGN:
A qualitative study comprised of semi-structured interviews via web conferencing software. Thematic analysis was undertaken, with themes/subthemes derived and a qualitative framework generated.SETTING:
Three Victorian Universities in Australia.PARTICIPANTS:
Physiotherapy students of entry-to-professional practice education programs (nâ¯=â¯17; mean age 23.7 years, 65% female), having completed at least 15 weeks of clinical placements.RESULTS:
The overarching theme was that students' experience of providing care for people with dementia was variable. The three sub-themes were 1) students experience significant challenges when working with people with dementia, 2) students experience a range of emotions when working with people with dementia, and 3) the quality of dementia learning experiences during entry-to-professional practice training is mostly inadequate. Students described the importance of the supervisor during clinical placements, and suggested incorporating 'real-life' scenario training in the classroom to assist them learn to manage the challenging symptoms of dementia.CONCLUSION:
Physiotherapy students believe that entry-to-practice dementia education is insufficient. These findings have important implications for the future planning and delivery of physiotherapy dementia education. CONTRIBUTION OF THE PAPER.Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Bases de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Demencia
/
Investigación Cualitativa
Tipo de estudio:
Prognostic_studies
/
Qualitative_research
Límite:
Adult
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Female
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Humans
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Male
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Physiotherapy
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article