Physical Therapy Faculty Publications
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2016
Abstract
Introduction: Improving cultural competence has been proposed as a way to decrease health disparities and is a priority of physical therapist (PT) education programs. Multiple published works describe curricular design for PT education programs to promote cultural competence, but limited data support the effectiveness of classroom or local cross-cultural activities.
Subjects: Fifty-two first-year PT students participated in the study.
Methods: All participants completed an Inventory for Assessing the Process of Cultural Competence Among Healthcare Professionals-Student Version (IAPCC-SV ©) pretest for a baseline measure of cultural competence and an IAPCC-SV© posttest 1 after a classroom educational module including readings, limited lecture, discussions, application activities, and self-reflection. Fifty-one participants completed a second IAPCC-SV© posttest after participating in two 2-hour local cross-cultural activities providing wellness assessments and recommendations for local refugee clients.
Results: PT students demonstrated improvement in overall cultural competence, cultural knowledge, and cultural skill after participating in classroom activities. Participation in local, cross-cultural activities resulted in additional improvements in overall cultural competence. The combination of classroom and local, cross-cultural activities resulted in greater improvements in overall cultural competence and each individual category.
Discussion and Conclusion: The current results provide support for using classroom activities to improve cultural competence in PT students. Local crosscultural experiences may provide an alternative and/or complimentary option to international service-learning trips for improving cultural competence. The current combination of classroom and local cross-cultural activities was effective for promoting comprehensive improvements in cultural competence.
Recommended Citation
Denton, J. M., Esparza, S., Fike, D. S., Gonzalez, J., & Denton, M. L. (2016). Improvements in cultural competence through classroom and local cross-cultural service-learning activities. Journal of Physical Therapy Education, 30(2), 6-13. https://doi.org/10.1097/00001416-201630020-00004
First Page
6
Last Page
13
Publication Title
Journal of Physical Therapy Education
DOI
10.1097/00001416-201630020-00004
Comments
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