Badmouthing of Health Care Professionals

Abstract

Background and Purpose. Studies indicate that in academic and clinical settings medical students are exposed to others’ speaking negatively (badmouthing) about physicians who practice certain specialty areas. The purposes of this study were to determine physical therapist students’ perceptions of the prevalence of badmouthing of health care professionals by physical therapist (PT) clinical instructors (CI) and their reactions regarding this behavior. Subjects. A total of 229 PT students from 2 doctor of physical therapy (DPT) programs participated in this study. The majority of students were female and the mean age was 25. Multiple types of internship settings were included. The clinic sites were located in 25 states. Methods. An electronic survey instrument was developed by the authors. Student, site, and CI demographic data were collected. Questions included incidence and nature of perceived badmouthing, professionals being badmouthed, and student reaction. Results. In this study, 33% of the students reported hearing their CI badmouth another health care professional, and 61% of those students indicated that it occurred 2 or more times during the clinical experience. No action was taken by 79% of the students that heard the badmouthing. Characteristics of CIs who badmouthed included 5 years or less of CI experience, less than 35 years of age, and not CI-credentialed by the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). Nurses, physicians, and chiropractors were the 3 most prevalent health care professions that were badmouthed. Discussion and Conclusion. Badmouthing or denigrating comments about health care professionals is in direct conflict with the APTA’s Core Values and Code of Ethics. The results indicate that students are observing perceived badmouthing incidences and not taking action. Professionalism and positive interdisciplinary collaboration among health care professionals are necessary components of the holistic approach for optimal patient management. Mentoring of PT students is a responsibility that all PTs share whether they are in academia or in the clinical setting.