Collaborative curriculum development: Clinicians’ views on the neurology content of a new occupational therapy course
✍ Scribed by Annie McCluskey
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 2000
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 130 KB
- Volume
- 47
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0045-0766
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
Academics are often accused of being out of touch with clinical practice. This can result in graduates who are poorly prepared to work in local health‐care systems. To avoid this scenario, occupational therapy clinicians in New South Wales were invited by mail to list 10 topics related to neurology, which they felt should be included in a new undergraduate curriculum. Fifty‐two clinicians responded. A modified nominal group technique was then used with 10 expert clinicians, to further explore the written responses. Content analysis revealed four areas which clinicians felt needed attention in the new curriculum. These areas or themes have been named: (i) Integrated Foundation Studies; (ii) The Art of a Thorough Assessment; (iii) Treatment Approaches in Neurology; and (iv) Building Confidence. Clinicians felt that neuroscience material needed to be better integrated with professional subjects; that observational skills and activity analysis should receive more class time, and that three different approaches to motor training should be taught. More practical student experience was also recommended, on and off campus, to help increase confidence when conducting initial assessments and upper limb retraining. Information from this study will be of interest to clinicians in neurology and to occupational therapy educators across Australia.