Knutsdottir S1, Eyjolfsdottir H1
1Landspitali University Hospital, Physiotherapy Department, Reykjavik, Iceland
Background: The emphasis on continuous professional development (CPD) within the healthcare has increased in recent years in accordance with increased demands on high quality care and evidence based practice. Physiotherapists in Iceland have legal and ethical obligations to improve their knowledge and professional skills. At Landspitali University Hospital in Iceland (LUH), a policy on CPD has been structured to increase quality of patient service and job satisfaction. Physiotherapists at LUH have not had a structured CPD. Therefore it was decided to develop and implement a structured CPD model. It was considered important to explore the physiotherapists´ attitude of CPD before a structured CPD model for physiotherapists would be implemented. The study was conducted in 2016.
Purpose: To investigate the attitude of physiotherapists at LUH towards CPD and their participation in CPD.
Methods: An electronic questionnaire using Lime Survey was sent to all physiotherapists at LUH (N=74). The questionnaire was made by the authors, based on published articles on attitude surveys. The survey included questions on perceived usefulness, motivation, barriers and cost of CPD. Participants could indicate if CPD should be mandatory and wishes for rewards for participation in CPD. Questions on demography and recent participation in CPD related activities were also included. The response options included 5-point Likert scale, multiple or single answers and write-in options. One reminder was sent via Lime survey and participation was encouraged at staff meetings at LUH. The answers were confidential. Descriptive statistics in Excel were used to analyze the data.
Results: Response rate was 66% (N=49). All strongly agreed/agreed that CPD was useful and 78% strongly agreed/agreed that CPD should be mandatory. The main motivations found for participating in CPD were prevention of burn-out and to increase job satisfaction (100%), to become a better practitioner (98%) and to increase the status of the profession (90%).
The main barriers to CPD were perceived workload and lack of staff (76%). Willingness to participate in a course/conference was 88% if the employer/trade union paid the cost fully/partly and 20% were willing to participate even if they had to pay themselves.
The majority (88%) wanted rewards for participating in CPD, 51% in form of increased salaries or days off whereas 29% expected increased job satisfaction. Almost all of the participants (96%) had been involved in some kind of CPD activities during the last 5 years. Participation in research was indicated by 33% and 18% had finished a formal postgraduate education.
Conclusion(s): The results indicate that the physiotherapists have a positive attitude to participate in CPD to prevent burn-out, increase job satisfaction and become better practitioners. The main worries were limited time for CPD due to perceived work load and lack of staff. Physiotherapists' attitude makes it feasible to implement structured and mandatory CPD at LUH.
Implications: The study results will assist the managers to support CPD in practice. A CPD model is being implemented to make CPD structured and mandatory. A repetition of the survey is planned to explore physiotherapists' attitude two years post implementation.
Keywords: Continuous Professional Development (CPD), CPD motivation, CPD barriers
Funding acknowledgements: Acknowledgements to the manager of Physiotherapy of Landspitali for support. No financial funding received.
Purpose: To investigate the attitude of physiotherapists at LUH towards CPD and their participation in CPD.
Methods: An electronic questionnaire using Lime Survey was sent to all physiotherapists at LUH (N=74). The questionnaire was made by the authors, based on published articles on attitude surveys. The survey included questions on perceived usefulness, motivation, barriers and cost of CPD. Participants could indicate if CPD should be mandatory and wishes for rewards for participation in CPD. Questions on demography and recent participation in CPD related activities were also included. The response options included 5-point Likert scale, multiple or single answers and write-in options. One reminder was sent via Lime survey and participation was encouraged at staff meetings at LUH. The answers were confidential. Descriptive statistics in Excel were used to analyze the data.
Results: Response rate was 66% (N=49). All strongly agreed/agreed that CPD was useful and 78% strongly agreed/agreed that CPD should be mandatory. The main motivations found for participating in CPD were prevention of burn-out and to increase job satisfaction (100%), to become a better practitioner (98%) and to increase the status of the profession (90%).
The main barriers to CPD were perceived workload and lack of staff (76%). Willingness to participate in a course/conference was 88% if the employer/trade union paid the cost fully/partly and 20% were willing to participate even if they had to pay themselves.
The majority (88%) wanted rewards for participating in CPD, 51% in form of increased salaries or days off whereas 29% expected increased job satisfaction. Almost all of the participants (96%) had been involved in some kind of CPD activities during the last 5 years. Participation in research was indicated by 33% and 18% had finished a formal postgraduate education.
Conclusion(s): The results indicate that the physiotherapists have a positive attitude to participate in CPD to prevent burn-out, increase job satisfaction and become better practitioners. The main worries were limited time for CPD due to perceived work load and lack of staff. Physiotherapists' attitude makes it feasible to implement structured and mandatory CPD at LUH.
Implications: The study results will assist the managers to support CPD in practice. A CPD model is being implemented to make CPD structured and mandatory. A repetition of the survey is planned to explore physiotherapists' attitude two years post implementation.
Keywords: Continuous Professional Development (CPD), CPD motivation, CPD barriers
Funding acknowledgements: Acknowledgements to the manager of Physiotherapy of Landspitali for support. No financial funding received.
Topic: Education
Ethics approval required: Yes
Institution: Landspitali University Hospital, Reykjavik, Iceland
Ethics committee: Ethical Committee of Administrative Research at Landspitali University Hospital
Ethics number: No. 5/2016 approved April 12th 2016
All authors, affiliations and abstracts have been published as submitted.
