A Comparison of Clinical Reasoning Among Rehabilitation Students During Experiential Learning

Fieldwork and clinical experiences are an academic requirement that occupational and physical therapy students are required to complete to obtain their professional degree. There is limited knowledge on the quantitative change in clinical reasoning among rehabilitation students participating in 3:1 collaborative or 1:1 traditional learning model during a terminal fieldwork or clinical experience. The purpose of the study was to compare change in clinical reasoning scores of rehabilitation science students who participated in a collaborative vs traditional learning model during a terminal fieldwork or clinical experience. A total of 102 cumulative clinical reasoning scores were obtained from rehabilitation students who completed the Health Science Reasoning Test (HSRT) pre and post-completion of a terminal fieldwork or clinical experience at a large health care institution. A mixed-model ANOVA was done to determine the change in clinical reasoning scores among students who participated in a collaborative versus traditional learning model. Paired t-tests were completed to further analyze and interpret the discipline by model interaction. A statistically significant difference was found in discipline x time interaction. For individual disciplines, occupational therapy students had a significant change in clinical reasoning scores post-completion of a terminal fieldwork experience; however, physical therapy students did not have a significant change in clinical reasoning.