The educational pathway to Advanced Practice for the physiotherapist: A systematic mixed studies review.
<h4>Background</h4>Advanced Practice Physiotherapy (APP) is a higher level of practice grounded in 4 pillars: clinical practice, leadership, education and research. A critical step toward successful integration and sustainability of APP in healthcare systems is understanding the educatio...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2025-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0322626 |
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| author | Kaitlyn Maddigan Chris Davis Brendan Saville Kathryn Nishimura Jennifer Van Bussel Andrews K Tawiah Katie L Kowalski Alison B Rushton |
| author_facet | Kaitlyn Maddigan Chris Davis Brendan Saville Kathryn Nishimura Jennifer Van Bussel Andrews K Tawiah Katie L Kowalski Alison B Rushton |
| author_sort | Kaitlyn Maddigan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <h4>Background</h4>Advanced Practice Physiotherapy (APP) is a higher level of practice grounded in 4 pillars: clinical practice, leadership, education and research. A critical step toward successful integration and sustainability of APP in healthcare systems is understanding the educational pathway to APP.<h4>Objectives</h4>1) To describe the post-licensure educational pathways that physiotherapists engage in to advance their level of practice. 2) To evaluate demonstration of the pillars of APP by the physiotherapist after traversing a post-licensure educational pathway.<h4>Methods</h4>This systematic mixed studies review is reported in accordance with PRISMA and pre-registered (PROSPERO: CRD42024499563). 8 databases plus the grey literature were searched. 2 independent reviewers determined eligibility, extracted data, assessed quality (QuADS) and determined the overall confidence in the cumulative evidence (GRADE-CERQual).<h4>Results</h4>81 studies (18 qualitative, 17 mixed methods, 46 quantitative) were included in a data based convergent qualitative synthesis. 6 distinct post-licensure educational pathways were described and evaluated: Masters level education, residency and fellowship programs, accredited area of practice education, mentorship, multiple encounter courses and single encounter courses.<h4>Conclusion</h4>There is a high level of confidence (GRADE-CERQual) in the finding that Masters level education consistently resulted in all 4 pillars demonstrated by the physiotherapist. Masters level education appears to be the optimal pathway to APP. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7812cfbdf59141edae6ea84ddbaaa3e4 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj-art-7812cfbdf59141edae6ea84ddbaaa3e42025-08-20T02:33:22ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032025-01-01205e032262610.1371/journal.pone.0322626The educational pathway to Advanced Practice for the physiotherapist: A systematic mixed studies review.Kaitlyn MaddiganChris DavisBrendan SavilleKathryn NishimuraJennifer Van BusselAndrews K TawiahKatie L KowalskiAlison B Rushton<h4>Background</h4>Advanced Practice Physiotherapy (APP) is a higher level of practice grounded in 4 pillars: clinical practice, leadership, education and research. A critical step toward successful integration and sustainability of APP in healthcare systems is understanding the educational pathway to APP.<h4>Objectives</h4>1) To describe the post-licensure educational pathways that physiotherapists engage in to advance their level of practice. 2) To evaluate demonstration of the pillars of APP by the physiotherapist after traversing a post-licensure educational pathway.<h4>Methods</h4>This systematic mixed studies review is reported in accordance with PRISMA and pre-registered (PROSPERO: CRD42024499563). 8 databases plus the grey literature were searched. 2 independent reviewers determined eligibility, extracted data, assessed quality (QuADS) and determined the overall confidence in the cumulative evidence (GRADE-CERQual).<h4>Results</h4>81 studies (18 qualitative, 17 mixed methods, 46 quantitative) were included in a data based convergent qualitative synthesis. 6 distinct post-licensure educational pathways were described and evaluated: Masters level education, residency and fellowship programs, accredited area of practice education, mentorship, multiple encounter courses and single encounter courses.<h4>Conclusion</h4>There is a high level of confidence (GRADE-CERQual) in the finding that Masters level education consistently resulted in all 4 pillars demonstrated by the physiotherapist. Masters level education appears to be the optimal pathway to APP.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0322626 |
| spellingShingle | Kaitlyn Maddigan Chris Davis Brendan Saville Kathryn Nishimura Jennifer Van Bussel Andrews K Tawiah Katie L Kowalski Alison B Rushton The educational pathway to Advanced Practice for the physiotherapist: A systematic mixed studies review. PLoS ONE |
| title | The educational pathway to Advanced Practice for the physiotherapist: A systematic mixed studies review. |
| title_full | The educational pathway to Advanced Practice for the physiotherapist: A systematic mixed studies review. |
| title_fullStr | The educational pathway to Advanced Practice for the physiotherapist: A systematic mixed studies review. |
| title_full_unstemmed | The educational pathway to Advanced Practice for the physiotherapist: A systematic mixed studies review. |
| title_short | The educational pathway to Advanced Practice for the physiotherapist: A systematic mixed studies review. |
| title_sort | educational pathway to advanced practice for the physiotherapist a systematic mixed studies review |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0322626 |
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