Abstract
BackgroundThe healthcare sector requires graduates with the ability to confidently assess and manage the majority of the medical conditions seen in hospitals.ObjectiveTo establish whether the most prevalent medical conditions treated by physiotherapists in Gauteng (South Africa) state health facilities align with the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) physiotherapy curriculum.MethodsThis was a retrospective review of condition-related statistics from physiotherapy departments within the Gauteng province state health facilities. Data from all Gauteng government hospitals that had submitted at least 75% of their physiotherapy condition–related statistics to the provincial statistics coordinator from January 2012 to December 2014 were considered and compared to medical conditions covered in the Wits 2015 physiotherapy curriculum to check if all conditions listed in the Gauteng statistics appeared within the Wits curriculum document. The number of teaching hours for the common conditions was noted to check the emphasis given to these conditions in the curriculum.ResultsEighty-three per cent of the hospitals submitted 75% of their monthly statistics. Overall, the most common conditions treated were lower limb fractures (13%) followed by stroke (7.6%) (n = 705 597). Within the neuro-musculoskeletal category, the most common conditions after lower limb fractures were soft tissue injuries (15.1%) (n = 330 511). The most common cardiopulmonary conditions were tuberculosis (24.9%), followed by pneumonia (13.8%) (n = 94 895). The most common neurological conditions were stroke (30.9%) followed by cerebral palsy (17%) (n = 174 024). Within the non-specified categories, the number of intensive care unit (ICU) patients was the highest (23%), followed by sputum induction (21%) (n = 138 187). The most common conditions that were emphasised within the Wits curriculum as indicated by the teaching hours: fractures, 14.5 (66%) of 22 third-year orthopaedics hours; stroke, 30 (73%) of 41 third-year neurology hours; soft tissue injuries, 18 (38%) of 48 fourth-year neuro-musculoskeletal hours; back lesions, 24 (50%) of 48 fourth-year neuro-musculoskeletal hours; and ICU patients, 30 (79%) of 38 fourth-year cardiopulmonary hours.ConclusionThe Wits physiotherapy curriculum covers all medical conditions treated by physiotherapists within the Gauteng state health facilities, and overall, the curriculum prepares the students to practise in a variety of situations.
Highlights
The development of physiotherapy is dependent on the abilities and potential of the graduates, and these graduates need to have skills that are relevant to the needs of the health sector to enable them to practise competently and with confidence (Hunt et al 1998)
In 2012, 28 facilities (93%) submitted but only 21 (75%) of these facilities submitted more than 75% of their statistics
The Wits physiotherapy curriculum covers all medical conditions treated by physiotherapists within the Gauteng state health facilities and covers everything within the World Confederation of Physical Therapy (WCPT) minimum training standards (WCPT 2011)
Summary
The development of physiotherapy is dependent on the abilities and potential of the graduates, and these graduates need to have skills that are relevant to the needs of the health sector to enable them to practise competently and with confidence (Hunt et al 1998). If our graduates cannot manage conditions seen in the South African (SA) health sector, they will not be relevant. The healthcare sector requires physiotherapy graduates who can enter its employ with the ability to confidently assess and manage the majority of medical conditions seen in its hospitals. To meet the needs of the healthcare sector, a curriculum is supposed to have current clinical skills as well as cover a wide variety of medical conditions that will be encountered during clinical practice (Brown, Brown & Roever 2006). Review of the curriculum to meet the national needs is required for relevance of training of the health professionals (Mumbo & Kinaro 2015). The healthcare sector requires graduates with the ability to confidently assess and manage the majority of the medical conditions seen in hospitals
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