Simulation-Based Education in Physical Therapist Professional Education: A Scoping Review

Brad Stockert; Nicki Silberman; Jason Rucker; Jacque Bradford; Sharon L Gorman; Kristin Curry Greenwood; Kelly Macauley; Amy Nordon-Craft; Myla Quiben

doi:10.1093/ptj/pzac133

Simulation-Based Education in Physical Therapist Professional Education: A Scoping Review

Phys Ther. 2022 Dec 6;102(12):pzac133. doi: 10.1093/ptj/pzac133.

Authors

Brad Stockert¹, Nicki Silberman², Jason Rucker³, Jacque Bradford⁴, Sharon L Gorman⁵, Kristin Curry Greenwood⁶, Kelly Macauley⁷, Amy Nordon-Craft⁸, Myla Quiben⁹

Affiliations

¹ California State University, Department of Physical Therapy, Sacramento, California, USA.
² Hunter College, Department of Physical Therapy, New York, New York, USA.
³ University of Kansas Medical Center, Department of Physical Therapy, Rehabilitation Science and Athletic Training, Kansas City, Kansas, USA.
⁴ University of Tennessee Health Science Center, College of Health Professions, Department of Physical Therapy, Memphis, Tennessee, USA.
⁵ Samuel Merritt University, Department of Physical Therapy, Oakland, California, USA.
⁶ Bouve College of Health Sciences; Department of Physical Therapy, Movement and Rehabilitation Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
⁷ College of Health and Pharmacy, Husson University, Bangor, Maine, USA.
⁸ University of Colorado, Denver, Anschutz Medical Campus, Physical Therapy Program, Aurora, Colorado, USA.
⁹ University of North Texas Health Science Center, Department of Physical Therapy, Fort Worth, Texas, USA.

PMID: 36200401
DOI: 10.1093/ptj/pzac133

Abstract

Objectives: The purposes of this study were to (1) describe and summarize the use of simulation-based education (SBE) with student physical therapists in the international literature and (2) describe the application and integration of standards of best practice (SOBP) for SBE reported in published physical therapy education research.

Methods: Ovid MEDLINE, CINAHL, Web of Science, and ERIC databases were searched. The search included any published study that involved the use of SBE with student physical therapists. Because this was a scoping review, only descriptive statistics were compiled; no methodological quality assessment was performed.

Results: This scoping review revealed a significant increase in literature describing SBE with student physical therapists in the past 10 years. Simulation was used to address learning objectives across a variety of content areas and clinical settings. Communication skills were the most common objectives for simulation. Limited use of SOBP, published in 2016, was reported, and use of author-generated outcome measures without validation was common.

Conclusions: Although there has been an increase in literature reporting the use of SBE with student physical therapists across many practice areas and settings, many articles reported limited use and integration of published SOBP and frequently utilized outcome measures that had not been validated.

Impact: The findings show that limited use of validated outcome measures and SOBP constrain the capacity for reproducing studies, comparing findings among studies, and completing systematic reviews that could inform and optimize best practices for the use of SBE in physical therapist professional education. Further research on SBE in physical therapy would benefit from investigations that integrated and reported the use of SOBP for standardized patients, simulation design, and delivery and assessment of learning outcomes over time at multiple Kirkpatrick learning levels.

Keywords: Education: Physical Therapist Students; Outcome Measures; Simulation-Based Education; Standards of Best Practice.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Education, Professional*
Humans
Learning
Physical Therapists*