An expert patient-led approach to learning and teaching: the case of physiotherapy

Abstract

With patient expertise being afforded greater legitimacy in healthcare provision, there is a strengthening case for involving patients more creatively in the education of healthcare professionals. This paper reports on the results of a small-scale educational research project designed to explore how third-year physiotherapy students experienced a teaching session on the subject of strokes, led by two expert patients, and what they learnt from it. Applying a qualitative methodology, six students were interviewed in depth about the experience. Four key pedagogic themes emerged from the analysis of the interview transcripts. The first related to the differences between the expert patients in terms of their backgrounds and their reactions to experiencing a stroke and of their respective contributions to the session. A second concerned the anxieties students felt in participating in a session of this kind, since there were various departures from the norm, and what they should take from it in terms of their learning. A third theme was uncertainty regarding the relationship between the presenters and students. The fourth theme was the impact on student learning given that it had not been a conventional session. Notwithstanding any misgivings the session helped to validate the contribution that those who have direct experience of a clinical condition can make to the education of healthcare professionals, particularly in the affective domain. In planning sessions of this kind it is recommended that presenters are chosen with a view to challenging stereotypes and that they are encouraged to tell their stories in an open and flexible manner, albeit within a framework of intended learning outcomes. Students need to approach the session with an open mind and, above all, tutors need to be prepared to take risks.

Active patient involvement in the education of health professionals

“…There are few published reports of patient involvement in other health professions education (one paper each from physical therapy and pharmacy), 24,25 although government policy appears to have stimulated this work in the UK. The role of the patient‐teacher in working with multiple health professional groups and in interprofessional education is also gaining recognition 26 .…”

An evaluation of students' perceptions of a college‐based programme that involves patients, carers and service users in physiotherapy education

“…There is a paucity of papers reporting patient involvement in the education of health professionals other than nursing, medicine and social work. In physiotherapy, a paper by Ottewill et al () appears to be one of the very few, and one wonders if this reflects the lack of patient involvement in physiotherapy education despite a need to infuse a patient‐centred approach in physiotherapy practice. Certainly, scholars in this profession have commented that there is little carry‐over from university to a clinical setting, and some therapists say that they do not feel adequately prepared by their universities (Hunt et al, ).…”

Teaching Nursing Assistant Students about Aphasia and Communication

“…One way to address this disconnect is to use a patient as educator approach, which has been successful in a variety of contexts. Medical schools have partnered geriatric mentors with medical students, 17 ambulatory clinics engaged people with HIV to teach medical students, 18 preservice physical therapy programs worked with people who had strokes to teach physical therapy students, 19 and graduate speech-language pathology programs have worked with people with aphasia to teach communication strategies to speech-language pathology students. 20 Although the patient as educator approach provides a firsthand perspective, the majority of reports do not fully explore the experiences of patient participants.…”

“…20 Although the patient as educator approach provides a firsthand perspective, the majority of reports do not fully explore the experiences of patient participants. 17,19,20 In one report where patient experiences were considered, patients expressed a sense of empowerment, discovered a newfound sense of themselves as teachers, and developed a stronger relationship with the health providers. 20 Similarly, people with aphasia involved in advocacy and outreach have reported personal satisfaction as a benefit of involvement.…”