Educational research in integrated exercise therapy course

Abstract

Background: Two core courses of therapeutic exercises in the physical therapy curriculum may not provide adequate skills for students to design therapeutic exercise for patients. Integrated exercise therapy course which is an elective course may promote the appropriate skills in therapeutic exercise to students.

Objectives: This educational research aimed to compare the difference of scores in physical therapy clinical practice courses between students who enrolled in the integrated exercise therapy course (experiment; EXP) and students who did not enroll in this course (control; CON).

Materials and methods: Scores for designing appropriated therapeutic exercise and scores in four clinical practice courses were compared between the EXP and CON group. Lecturers at the department of physical therapy and clinical instructors at hospitals were evaluators and scored performance of students.

Results: There was no difference of scores between EXP and CON in the scores for designing appropriated therapeutic exercise as well as in all clinical practice courses.

Conclusion: The elective course, integrated exercise therapy, did not promote additional skills in therapeutic exercise to students who enrolled in this course when compared to students who did not enroll in this course.