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Background: Shifting from face-to-face teaching to incorporating technology may prepare students better for future work as health professionals. Evidence of blended teaching’s effect on the academic performance of undergraduate physiotherapy students’ performance is scarce.Objective: The purpose of our study was to determine students’ theoretical and clinical performance in a blended teaching module compared to their own performance in two knowledge areas taught face to face, and student perceptions of blended teaching in the third-year physiotherapy curriculum.Methods: The cross-sectional study design included 47 third-year physiotherapy students. The orthopaedic module was delivered using a blended teaching approach in two consecutive semesters, whilst two other physiotherapy knowledge areas, neuromusculoskeletal and cardiopulmonary, in the same semesters were delivered face to face. Theoretical and clinical performances of students were compared for significance and effect. Students were assessed on their theoretical and clinical knowledge in all areas using the same assessment methods. The students (n = 43) also completed a survey on their blended teaching experience.Results: Significantly higher theoretical marks for orthopaedics were calculated compared to neuromusculoskeletal and cardiopulmonary for both semesters with a large positive effect (average Cohen d = 4.44) for blended teaching on theoretical examination performance; no statistically significant difference for clinical performances. Students felt engaged in the blended teaching process, and 72% preferred blended teaching over face-to-face teaching or online delivery.Conclusion: Blended teaching improved the theoretical marks, demonstrating that knowledge acquisition was improved, but not clinical performance.Clinical implications: The study contributes to the knowledge base of blended learning in Health Science Education in South Africa. The authors identified a gap where future studies should investigate the effect of blended learning on clinical performance outcomes as a continuation from this one.

Background: Knowledge of neurophysiology of pain influences healthcare providers’ attitudes and beliefs about patients with chronic low back pain which affect management choices.Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the level of knowledge of pain and attitudes and beliefs towards patients with chronic low back pain among final year undergraduate students from the School of Therapeutic Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand.Methods: This cross-sectional study included two questionnaires – Health Care Providers’ Pain and Impairment Relationship Scale (HC-PAIRS) for measuring attitudes and beliefs about pain and the Neurophysiology of Pain Questionnaire (NPQ) for knowledge of pain. These were distributed to 224 students. An analysis of variance and a two-sided t tests compared data with p ≤ 0.05.Results: The study had a 65% response rate (n = 145), of which the majority were female students (n = 115, 79%). Overall, the mean correct NPQ score was 6.01 (± 1.98), with a significant difference among the programmes (p = 0.005). Mean NPQ scores for each programme were as follows: physiotherapy 6.97 (1.77), biokinetics 6.31 (2.43), exercise science 6.25 (2.5), pharmacy and pharmacology 5.69 (1.39), nursing 5.32 (1.39) and occupation therapy 5.21 (2.09). The mean correct scores for HC-PAIRS were 63.1 (8.9), with significantly higher scores in females than males (p = 0.04). Knowledge scores had a low inverse relationship with scores for attitudes and beliefs towards patients with chronic low back pain (r = -0.304; p = 0.0002).Conclusion: There is a deficit in knowledge of pain among final year students in the School of Therapeutic Sciences, with a low correlation with attitudes and beliefs towards patients with chronic low back pain. Therefore, improving the knowledge of pain might result in a change in these attitudes and beliefs.Clinical implications: The results have shown an association between knowledge of pain and attitudes and beliefs towards patients with chronic low back pain. Therefore, knowledge is one of the factors that could contribute in changing the attitudes.

Introduction: Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection remains prevalent co-morbidity, and among fracture patients. Few studies have investigated the role of exercise interventions in preventing bone demineralization in people who have fractures and HIV. If exercise exposed, HIV-infected individuals may experience improved bone health outcomes (BMD), function, quality of life (QoL). The study will aim to assess the impact of home based exercises on bone mineral density, functional capacity, QoL, and some serological markers of health in HIV infection among Nigerians and South Africans. Methods and design: The study is an assessor-blinded randomized controlled trial. Patients managed with internal and external fixation for femoral shaft fracture at the study sites will be recruited to participate in the study. The participants will be recruited 2 weeks post-discharge at the follow-up clinic with the orthopaedic surgeon. The study population will consist of all persons with femoral fracture and HIV-positive and negative (HIV-positive medically confirmed) aged 18 to 60 years attending the above-named health facilities. For the HIV-positive participants, a documented positive HIV result, as well as a history of being followed-up at the HIV treatment and care center. A developed home based exercise programme will be implemented in the experimental group while the control group continues with the usual rehabilitation programme. The primary outcome measures will be function, gait, bone mineral density, physical activity, and QoL. Discussion: The proposed trial will compare the effect of a home-based physical exercise-training programme in the management of femoral fracture to the usual physiotherapy management programmes with specific outcomes of bone mineral density, function, and inflammatory markers. Trial registration: The study was prospectively registered with the Pan African Clinical Trials Registry (Reference number – PACTR201910562118957) on October 21, 2019. ( https://pactr.samrc.ac.za/TrialDisplay.aspx?TrialID=9425 ).

The objective of this review is to establish the association between chronic pain and laterality judgment. Specifically, the review question: Is there a difference in laterality judgment in people with chronic pain and pain-free individuals?