Masters Degrees (Centre for Health Professions Education)

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Browsing Masters Degrees (Centre for Health Professions Education) by browse.metadata.advisor "Ernstzen, D."

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    The perceptions of final year physiotherapy students and their clients regarding their experiences of home visits : an exploratory case study
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2014-12) Parris, Dianne; Van Schalkwyk, S.; Ernstzen, D.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Centre for Health Professions Education.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Home-based rehabilitation (HBR) in under-resourced areas in a primary health care context exposes students to the real life situations of clients. The educational experience of HBR, underpinned by the theory of situated learning, promotes experiential and transformative learning. HBR leads not only to academic learning and personal development, but also to an understanding of social accountability and responsibility. Physiotherapy students and their clients frequently have diverse lingual, socio-economic and cultural backgrounds which may hinder the provision of appropriate treatment to clients in their residences. Increased knowledge of HBR in the physiotherapy context could result in an enhanced experience for both student and client. This study sought to explore the perceptions of physiotherapy students and their clients regarding HBR as part of clinical training in resource-constrained settings. Whether the students felt adequately prepared to perform HBR was also explored. A qualitative research design in the interpretivist paradigm was used. An exploratory case study was performed. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with clients (N=7) living in an under-resourced setting who had received HBR from physiotherapy students. Paired interviews were conducted with final year physiotherapy students (N=6) after their HBR placement. The data were subjected to inductive thematic analysis and themes developed. The findings showed that while clients appreciated the students’ services, there were communication barriers and unmet expectations. Students reported difficulty in adapting to the unfamiliar context, resulting in interventions not being sufficiently client-centred. They voiced a need for language competency to assist in communication. Earlier facilitated exposure to under-resourced contexts in the early clinical phase was suggested to reduce culture shock. An awareness of home environments in under-resourced areas influenced the students’ interventions in other contexts. To gain maximum benefit from the learning opportunities available through HBR, students require support for client management and client-centred problem solving in an under-resourced setting. Guided reflection should form part of the HBR placement to facilitate the construction of new knowledge, to promote deep transformative learning and to increase the students’ awareness of their role as change agents. Exposure to real life situations in under-resourced settings in the form of HBR provides valuable situated and authentic learning opportunities for physiotherapy students. The experience can be useful in preparing graduates to address the needs of the populations they will serve during community service.