Implementation of an Advanced Practice Physiotherapy Clinical Placement in Paediatric Rheumatology: A Case Report

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Rheumatology
• Physiotherapy Education
• Advanced Practice

Background:

• Awareness of advanced physiotherapist practitioner (APP) roles is limited among physiotherapy students.
• Entry-level physiotherapy curricula can benefit from incorporating advanced practice experiences.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the implementation and reflections of an entry-level physiotherapy student clinical placement with an APP.
• To evaluate the effectiveness of such a placement in pediatric rheumatology.

Main Methods:

• A 7-week physiotherapy clinical placement was designed for an MSc (PT) student.
• The placement involved 2 days/week supervised by an APP and 3 days/week by a traditional physiotherapist.
• Student performance was assessed using a learning contract and the Assessment of Clinical Performance tool.

Main Results:

• Student performance in the traditional physiotherapy component met MSc (PT) benchmarks.
• Key domains like communication and professionalism aligned with APP supervision.
• Strengths included increased awareness of the APP role and practice of core physiotherapy skills.
• Challenges involved the lack of standardization in APP roles affecting delegation and expectations.

Conclusions:

• Developing clinical placements with APPs can enhance physiotherapy student awareness of advanced practice.
• Such placements offer valuable clinical education opportunities within entry-level physiotherapy programs.
• Recommendations are provided for establishing similar APP clinical placement models.