Establishing National Consensus on the Canadian Physiotherapy Association's Core Professional Values Through e-Delphi...

Area of Science:

• Professional ethics in healthcare
• Physiotherapy professional standards

Background:

• Core professional values (CPVs) are essential for guiding physiotherapist behaviors and association activities.
• A validated list of CPVs and associated behaviors (ABs) is crucial for maintaining professional standards.

Purpose of the Study:

• To confirm or modify a list of 10 CPVs and their associated behaviors (ABs) for the Canadian Physiotherapy Association (CPA).
• To ensure CPVs and ABs reflect current professional expectations through member consensus.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a three-round electronic Delphi (e-Delphi) survey process with CPA members.
• Achieved consensus based on a pre-defined 80% agreement threshold for relevance and essentiality of CPVs and ABs.
• Incorporated member feedback and expert consultation to refine CPVs and ABs.

Main Results:

• Over 1,000 CPA members participated across three survey rounds.
• Ten CPVs (accountability, advocacy, altruism, client centredness, compassion, equity, excellence, integrity, respect, social responsibility) were confirmed.
• The number of associated behaviors (ABs) increased from 29 to 35 during the study.

Conclusions:

• A consensus-based list of 10 CPVs and 35 ABs has been established for the CPA.
• These confirmed values and behaviors will inform the professional activities of clinicians and the CPA.
• Future research will explore non-clinical ABs and demographic influences on CPV integration.