Undergraduate prosthetics and orthotics programme objectives:a baseline for international comparison and curricular development.

BACKGROUND

Prosthetics and orthotics is a relatively recent addition to the suite of undergraduate professional preparation programmes. There has been limited publication regarding international patterns of curriculum development, particularly concerning how objectives differ across global regions.

OBJECTIVES

This paper compares current prosthetics and orthotics curricula from a range of regions and identifies both common and distinctive objectives.

STUDY DESIGN

Mixed method: document analysis followed by modified Delphi process.

METHODS

Documents were analysed qualitatively to compare various curricula and emergent features were evaluated by a group of expert prosthetics and orthotics instructors.

RESULTS

There was substantial agreement that programmes should improve student knowledge and understanding. They should establish and extend student fabrication, communication skills and professional co-operation. However, there appeared to be regional differences in the priority given to critical thinking and clinical reasoning; integration of theory and practice and particular approaches to teaching prosthetics and orthotics.

CONCLUSIONS

This study revealed substantial consensus regarding the importance of clear programme objectives dealing with student abilities, professional skills and contemporary understanding. However, this study also revealed regional differences that may well reward further investigation.