Pelvic Health Content in Canadian Entry-To-Practice Physiotherapy Programs: An Online Survey.

Area of Science:

• Physiotherapy Education
• Pelvic Health Training
• Curriculum Development

Background:

• Pelvic health physiotherapy is a growing field offering conservative treatment for various conditions.
• Canadian entry-to-practice physiotherapy programs have flexibility in curriculum design, potentially leading to varied graduate competencies.
• Understanding current pelvic health content is crucial for standardizing training.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the nature and extent of pelvic health content integration in Canadian entry-to-practice physiotherapy programs.
• To identify common themes and variations in pelvic health education across Canadian physiotherapy programs.

Main Methods:

• A descriptive, cross-sectional e-survey was distributed to representatives of Canadian entry-to-practice physiotherapy programs.
• Data was collected from participating program representatives regarding their curriculum content.

Main Results:

• Ten of 15 Canadian programs participated in the survey.
• Pelvic health content was integrated into both required and optional courses in participating programs.
• All programs covered musculoskeletal conditions, urinary incontinence, and pelvic pain, including anatomy, physiology, clinical reasoning, subjective assessment, and pelvic floor muscle training. Few programs included internal pelvic floor techniques or addressed transgender populations.

Conclusions:

• The study provides foundational data on current pelvic health curricular content in Canada.
• This understanding is a necessary first step toward standardizing and enhancing entry-level pelvic health physiotherapy training.
• Further efforts are needed to ensure comprehensive training, including specialized techniques and diverse population care.