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Chapter

Introduction to the Blueprint for Excellence in Physical Therapy Education

  • Introduction to the Blueprint for Excellence in Physical Therapy Education
  • Philosophy of Excellence
  • ACAPT Framework for Excellence
  • Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging
  • The Value Equation of Physical Therapist Education
  • Faculty Success
  • Student Success and Learning
  • The "ABCs" of Program Essentials
  • Curricular Design and Delivery in Contemporary Doctor of Physical Therapy Education
  • Course Organization
  • Clinical Education
  • Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice in Health Professions
  • Simulation-based Education
  • The Culture of Research and Scholarship
  • Service in Physical Therapy Education
  • Lifelong Learning/Professional Development
  • Advancing Excellence Through the Myriad Roles of Educational Consulting
  • Our Contributors
Section 1: Section 1 Title Goes Here Section 2: Section 2 Title Goes Here Section 3: Section 3 Title Goes Here Section 4: Section 4 Title Goes Here Section 5: Section 5 Title Goes Here Section 6: Section 6 Title Goes Here Section 7: Section 7 Title Goes Here

Authors:

  • Barbara Sanders, PT, PhD, FAPTA
  • Scott Ward, PT, PhD, FAPTA

Chapter Publication Date: 10/01/2024

Background

The American Council of Academic Physical Therapy (ACAPT), which represents institutions in the United States that house Doctor of Physical Therapist Programs and their faculty and clinical partners, seeks to encourage and promote ongoing improvement of, and the pursuit of excellence in physical therapy education. In 2017, the ACAPT Board of Directors considered a motion to develop a comprehensive physical therapy education resource for its institutional members and in 2019, they named two founding editors to spearhead the production of this resource – Dr. Barbara Sanders, PT, PhD, FAPTA and Dr. Scott Ward, PT, PhD, FAPTA. This first edition published by Academic Council of Academic Physical Therapy (ACAPT) features a contemporary source of essential information for physical therapy educational programs. The purpose of this work is to inspire all physical therapy education programs to seek excellence to best prepare future practitioners who are clinically competent and adaptable, empathetic, and innovative. ACAPT and the editors of the Blueprint represent years of meaningful effort by educators and researchers upon whose shoulders the progression of physical therapy education rests. 

Our readers are familiar with the progression of physical therapy education. The formal education of physical therapists (Rehabilitation Aides to start) began early in the 1900’s and the first documented Bachelor of Science degree in physical therapy was offered by New York University in 1927. In the 1940’s, education shifted from being mainly hospital based post-graduate certificate programs to becoming University program based. Progression from the baccalaureate degree to post-graduate degrees began in 1960 with the first Masters’ Degree (Case Western Reserve University), to the Doctor of Physical therapy degree (DPT) beginning with Creighton University in 1993. The DPT is now the only entry-level physical therapist degree recognized by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE). CAPTE is an important element in the headway of physical therapy education. The first accreditation standards for physical therapy education were created in 1928 and have been revised in the ensuing years to match the evolution of the educational needs of the profession. Since 1978, CAPTE has been recognized as the sole accrediting body for physical therapy education by the United States Department of Education. All the changes in physical therapy education have been in response to the advancement of the profession and practice of physical therapy and the increasing expectations of our graduates. Many DPT programs are a part of Departments, Colleges, and Universities that offer related PhD programs that further train physical therapists and others who aim to advance data driven progress and evolution of the profession of physical therapy. Our history argues against complacency and the Blueprint is being published to continue to encourage consistency, quality, and visions for pursuit of excellence. 

In 1997, the American Physical Therapy Association published a Normative Model of Physical Therapist Professional Education, this model was revised in 2000 and 2004. This landmark, consensus driven, document included entry-level practice expectations with education outcomes, and samples of behavioral and instructional objectives for content. These documents provided direction for physical therapy educational programs over the past 27 years. This document has been frequently cited as the reference for program organization and development but has not been updated since its 2004 revision. Physical therapy education continues to undergo transformative shifts, propelled by advances in technology, evolving healthcare landscapes, and a deeper understanding of learning processes. Defining excellence, recommending models and common terminologies, and proposing visions for excellence in our education programs have been pursued in published papers. These publications have presented useful material with the goal of developing a more complete culture of quality in our education programs, all of which are referenced commonly in the chapters of the Blueprint.

The Blueprint is authored by academic physical therapists and colleagues from across the United States. These authors characterize a breadth and depth of experience and represent backgrounds from different types of higher education institutions who use evidence-based concepts and accepted educational practices in their chapters. The Blueprint presents a comprehensive framework for developing excellence in physical therapy education, aiming to offer physical therapy programs information about essentials in physical therapy education and opportunities to identify areas that will encourage excellence in program offerings. Central to this Blueprint is the integration of myriad educational topics, covered in 16 separate chapters. The text can, in toto, be a full-scale reference for educational programs. While individual chapters may serve as stand-alone stimuli to encourage improvement towards excellence in a specific educational realm. For example, a program that has improving its research profile as an element of its strategic plan, can reference the chapter on Research and Scholarship to direct its thinking.  Or a program desiring to improve its interprofessional offering and profile can mine the chapter on Interprofessional Education for guidance on its pathway to improvement. 

Concept Description

The publication consists of chapters that cover a wide range of topics that provide information relevant to all physical therapy education programs. the following topics with their purpose. 

• Philosophy of Excellence in Education provides clear reference for and guidance in establishing a philosophy and culture of excellence in programmatic undertakings and suggests that working towards excellence in education should be the rule, not the exception. Themes in the chapter reinforce that excellence is a dynamic process, should be aspirational, and is most successfully achieved on a collective organizational level not an individual level. 

  • ACAPT Framework for Excellence reviews and elucidates the ACAPT scaffold upon which excellent education programs should be structured and includes insight about visionary leadership and leadership development, social responsibility, equity, diversity and inclusion, continuous improvement and innovation, engaging learners with evidence-based teaching and learning, collaboration and community partnerships, and scholarly inquiry and lifelong learning. 
  • Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging (DEIB) brings critical awareness to what we wish was inherent in practice and politics - that we understand the communities we serve and work hard to reflect those communities of interest and need in our education and our care. The chapter goes beyond defining diversity, equity, and inclusion by clarifying the importance of understanding and applying these terms in programs and in our systems. It further clarifies how all this work should lead us to a true consciousness of belonging in a community of learners, educators, scholars, and practitioners. The elements of DEIB are threaded throughout the publication.
  • The Value Equation takes the reader beyond the equation as it is used in healthcare and business in general and applies it to our educational thinking. The layers identified in understanding this application include relevance of the value of a DPT educational program to the student, the institution and program, our clinical partners, the broader professional community, and patients and clients. Discussion also includes possible strategies for reducing the cost of a student’s education.
  • Faculty Success covers the critical element of encouraging and promoting faculty progression and achievement in all realms of the academy. The chapter covers the ranks and breadth of faculty lines (including clinical faculty), expectations, roles, and advancement. It emphasizes the importance of care in faculty recruitment, the meaning of faculty credentials, and discusses the significance of individually focused faculty development plans. The contribution of engaged leadership and a culture of collaborative successes is presented.
  • Student Success and Learning reflects a student’s journey through pre-professional, and post-professional education. The focus is on the DPT professional phase and embraces consideration of students’ cognitive loads, and processes, roles of implicit and explicit learning, and domains of learning. Options for assessment of student learning are presented. Orientation of the learner, program culture and communication and advising are covered. Important mention of accommodations and faculty support were incorporated in the content.
  • ABC’s of Program Essentials encompasses important concepts related to the foundational operations of a DPT program. These include assessment of program efforts and reckoning for accreditation requirements. A discussion of policies and the business of running a program is provided. The importance of developing a program culture, which is directional and remains healthy, is deliberated with emphasis on methods to accomplish this. The need for caring for students, faculty and partnerships are also described.
  • Curricular Design and Delivery in Contemporary Doctor of Physical Therapy Education provides a comprehensive overview of what a curriculum is and how to consider the variables of different curricular models and design. The importance of a clear curriculum plan is provided, which is followed by consideration of models and philosophies. Curriculum delivery is shared with variables related to methodologies (i.e., residential, hybrid or blended) with examples. Management, assessment, and evaluation of the curriculum is presented as critical to assure a progressive and responsive curriculum.
  • Course Development, Organization, and Assessment gets to the heart of the forethought and effort required to develop a meaningful course. The essence of any educational program is the quality of the courses offered. The chapter includes the importance and development of a course syllabus driven by established course goals and consideration of educational domains are presented. Determining course content, styles of teaching and learning, and assessing the course delivery and student outcomes are important elements of the chapter.
  • Clinical Education emphasizes the criticality of the partnership between academics and clinics, including methods for enhancing this relationship through communications and shared values. The importance of designing a meaningful clinical education curriculum leads programs to consider their expectations, the selection of learning strategies, and the assessment of the objectives and eventual outcomes. Discussion includes topics related to assessment of students, development and support of clinical educators, and structure of the clinical education team. The sequence of experiences (including integrated clinical experiences) and the benefits and limitations of currently used clinical education modules are examined. Other topics such as advising, placement, and cost are also contained in the chapter.
  • Interprofessional Education and Collaborative Practice in Health Professions (notably authored inter-professionally) provides background and rationale for this important element of DPT education.
  • Simulation-Based Education covers this important, and ever-growing teaching modality, including a review of the standards related to this type of education is provided. The various models typically used in simulation-based education (paper-based, human actor-based, manikin-based, and computer-based) are covered and the ways these modalities are used is discussed. Preparing students for the interactions in simulations, appropriate ways to facilitate this methodology, and fidelity in simulation-based education are all deliberated. The challenges associated with simulation-based education are contrasted with the opportunities available with its application.
  • The Culture of Research and Scholarship provides information about the evolution and importance of research and scholarship as anchors for DPT education and the PT profession with DPT programs being recognized as important sources of data production and analysis. The expectation of developing a positive culture of research and scholarship from the academy and methods for accomplishing this are outlined. Elements of the establishment of a research arm are presented and include discussion of infrastructure, grants and grants support, research training, research leadership, and collaboration. The result of the research and the importance of outcomes of other creative academic projects, culminating critically in dissemination of the resulting scholarly products is covered.
  • Service is an important component of a DPT program as it is one of the pillars of assessment of faculty performance and as a professional expectation of students. For faculty, service in the program, to the institution/academy (at various levels), to the profession of physical therapy and related professional societies and extending service to salient communities is presented. The impact of service as a part of the learning for students in their curriculum is deliberated, as is its importance in engaging students with their community and as a meaningful pathway of life-long learning.
  • Lifelong Learning and Professional Development profiles the need to intentionally engender enthusiasm for professional development and continuing learning into a curriculum and anchors this with a discussion of deliberate practice. Important principles of giving and accepting feedback in refining one’s progress is presented. A deep coverage of the magnitude of reflection includes definitions, methodologies, and models for consequential reflection, and how opportunities for reflection and assessment of reflections are present. Strategies and challenges related to the establishment and use of reflective practices help the reader broaden their view – just as the practice of reflection should broaden anyone’s insight and experience.
  • Advancing Excellence through the Myriad Roles of Educational Consulting cover the importance of seeking and providing consultative service from and by experts that can help direct, confer, mentor, or coach program administrators and faculty in areas where needs are identified. The roles of consultants are provided and how to assess a program’s potential need for consultative services is covered. Contracting these services, including requests, match, assessment of outcome, and finances are included in the content of this chapter. 

Summary

The editors wish to thank all the authors for their creativity and hard work and the exercise of sound judgement and application of scholarship in the writing of their chapters. And, special thanks go to Dr. Diane Jette, PT, PhD, FAPTA for her invaluable contribution in reviewing each chapter and her expertise in making recommendations to improve this initial Blueprint.

Our hope is that this publication will help a developing program begin with excellence, not just accreditation approval, in mind; a recognized program identifies themes for new or ongoing progress toward excellence; and a long-established program identifies areas in which it can enhancing its excellence.

Finally, Dr. Sanders and Dr. Ward (editors) concede that the history of physical therapy education advancement will predictably repeat itself through necessary educational change in response to new demands for educational innovation and for accountability to the expectations from institutions, students, practitioners, and the public we serve. We ask our colleagues in practice and education to use their collective wisdom and inventive minds, to respond to new data from ongoing research and calculable shifts in technology to keep this document contemporary. Thus, our hope as foundational Editors is that ACAPT and our professional colleagues will see this as an ever-evolving tome – to update and adapt as demanded by new knowledge and with new insight.

ACAPT welcomes feedback and input about this publication as it hopes to keep it a relevant and valuable asset. 

References

APTA 100 Milestones of Physical Therapy. https://timeline.apta.org/centennial-timeline/#story-923 
Individuals who use any portion of this ebook are asked to cite the authors' work, when applicable, in the following way: “Author(s) of the Chapter. (Year of Publication). Title of the chapter. American Council of Academic Physical Therapy Blueprint for Excellence in Academic Physical Therapy, 2024. www.acapt.org.”
Copyright © 2023 American Council of Academic Physical Therapy (ACAPT)
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