An analysis and comparison of the educational costs of clinical placements for occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech pathology and audiology students.

The purpose of this paper is to describe the methodology and summarize the results of a study of the educational costs of clinical placement for students in occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech pathology and audiology at The University of British Columbia. The sample represented 42.9% of the facilities offering occupational therapy placements, 41.4% of those offering physical therapy placements, and 52.4% of those offering speech pathology and audiology placements. During a 12-month period, these facilities provided 77.3% of the total clinical hours for the occupational therapy students, 65.1% for the physical therapy students, and 66.1% for the speech pathology and audiology students. Estimates of the number of hours of single-purpose and joint-purpose instructional activities and percentage estimates of direct-contact time were used as a basis for calculating the costs to facilities of accepting students for clinical placement. The methodology permitted comparisons of these costs across health disciplines. Both the methodology and the findings of this study can help government, educational institutions, and clinical facilities in defining policies and funding mechanisms for clinical training programs.