Assessing Cultural Competence Among Canadian Physiotherapists: A Qualitative Analysis of a Cross-Sectional Survey,...

Purpose: This study is the second part of a cross-sectional questionnaire aiming to identify Canadian physiotherapists' needs and strategies for physiotherapy associations to improve cultural competence in physiotherapy. Method: We conducted a descriptive qualitative analysis of one open-ended question of a cross-sectional questionnaire. We used inductive thematic analysis to develop and modify codes as concepts emerged. Inductive analysis was used to develop the codebook from the qualitative finding of the research study. Results: We received a total of 806 responses, and of those individuals, 485 provided one to three suggestions as part of the open-ended question. We identified two major themes from our open-ended question: (1) education and (2) institutional change. There were four subthemes categorized under education: (1) diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI) training opportunities, (2) resources, (3) accessibility to education, and (4) representation within educational resources. Institutional change was categorized into three subthemes: (1) advocacy, (2) support, and (3) representation in leadership. Conclusions: The results of this questionnaire act as a meaningful and necessary call to action to key stakeholders in the physiotherapy profession. There is a need for educational institutions, regulatory bodies, and associations to re-evaluate policies surrounding cultural competence to improve the delivery of culturally safe health care.