Comparison of Section on Women's Health, American Physical Therapy Association, Guidelines for Women's Health Content in Professional Physical Therapist Education; 2005 to 2014

This article compares the survey tools, the survey results, and the subsequent guidelines. Study Design: Comparative report. Methods and Outcomes: A cutoff score of 75% from a faculty and clinician survey ruled in areas of practice included in the 2005 Guideline. A cutoff score of 70% from an original survey to both faculty and clinicians was used to determine curricular items included in 2014. One category (polycystic ovary disease) was deleted from the 2014 Guideline. Ten new categories, including bowel and colorectal cancer, chronic fatigue syndrome, gallbladder issues in pregnancy, and thromboembolic events in obstetric clients, were added in 2014 Guideline. The 2014 Guideline was organized by system and subdivided into common diagnoses and pathologies, whereas the 2005 Guideline was formatted similar to the Normative Model for Physical Therapist Education. Information regarding the WH content that was being taught in entry-level PT curricula 10 years ago compared with present day is noted in this Guideline comparison. Discussion: The differences in content categories between the 2 versions of the Guideline may be explained by changes in clinical practice and by the differences in the surveys used. The 2014 Guideline should assist faculty in updating WH curricular content in entry-level PT programs.
Source: Journal of Women’s Health Physical Therapy - Category: Physiotherapy Tags: Clinical Commentaries Source Type: research