International fieldwork placements in low-income countries: Exploring community perspectives

There has been a significant increase in the number of occupational and physical therapy students going on international fieldwork placements in low-income countries. Yet, there has been a lack of research describing this experience from the agencies that host students. The research question was 'how do members of an agency within a low-income country perceive, interpret and give meaning to international fieldwork placements where students from a Canadian university provide occupational and physical therapy services?'

Purposive sampling was used to recruit participants from five affiliated international fieldwork sites. Six semi-structured interviews exploring the perspectives of individuals from agency sites in low-income countries facilitated the data collection. Interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim for thematic analysis.

Four themes provided insight into the participants' experience of hosting student therapists. Participants emphasised: (i) there was a reciprocity of learning between agency members and students; (ii) they felt responsible for the health and safety of the students, as well as providing an enriching experience; (iii) participants questioned the preparation phase; and (iv) recommendations were made by participants to strengthen partnerships while contemplating sustainable practices.

This study highlighted that effective preparation, enhanced communication, reflection and reciprocity is necessary to achieve what hosting agencies view as sustainable international placements. These results provide a platform for stakeholders to question their current processes for fieldwork placement engagement and potential suggestions for improving current international fieldwork partnerships.