MODEL EVALUATION FOR PHYSICAL THERAPY PRACTICE IN UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM AT UNIVERSIDAD INDUSTRIAL DE SANTANDER, COLOMBIA

Casas Sanchez A.S.¹, Ramirez Muñoz P.C.¹, Patiño Segura M.S.¹

¹Universidad Industrial de Santander, Santander, Bucaramanga, Colombia

Background: Currently, the Physical Therapy PT school does not have an evaluation system of social and academic impact for the training practice that PT students perform in the clinical and community setting during the undergraduate degree programs. It is important to create a methodology to determine the relevance that the training practice represents for the students, for the practice settings and particularly for the involved population.

Purpose: To design a model evaluation for physical therapy practice in undergraduate program at Industrial University of Santander, in Bucaramanga, Colombia, South America.

Methods: This qualitative study follow these steps: 1) Review of national and international theoretical models to identify key issues in the PT formation process. 2) Meetings among groups of experts from the city and the country to identify the PT competencies that should acquire during the training practice training. 3) Define the minimum requirements of practice settings. 4) Propose and delimit indicators in workshops with professors and center coordinators of practice settings.

Results: The competencies for undergraduate PT student at six levels were established (clinics, administrative, ethics, research, communication, and public health). To practice settings at five requirements were identified (infrastructure, technology, administrative processes and procedures, codes of ethics and teamwork). For clinical and community practice twenty indicators were created at the following levels: service quality, patient safety, effectiveness, egress and continuity of care, among others. Additionally, an assessment tool for students on the practice training experience was developed. Furthermore, complementary tools were designed to help the implementation of the model with the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT).

Conclusion(s): The practice training in PT student is a process of acquisition of essential skills, which requires the interaction of the University with the health institutions, other areas (public, private, educational, government organizations), community settings and service networks articulated. The practice training allows interaction with the external environment and contributes to improving the quality of life of the population attended. Therefore, it is expected that these evaluation model be coherent with the needs of undergraduate training, determine the impact and relevance of the actions to address the health problematics of the population.

Implications: The model evaluation proposed by the PT School in Industrial University of Santander can be used as reference for similar Physiotherapy Undergraduate Programs.

Funding acknowledgements: Universidad Industrial de Santander, Research and Extension Vice-Rectory

Topic: Education: clinical

Ethics approval: According to Colombian law (Resolution No. 008430 1993) this project does not require endorsement of the Ethics Committee

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