Clinical Reasoning Readiness and Confidence of DPT Students with PT Interventions Using Telehealth

Telehealth service-delivery content has an emerging footprint on entry-level physical therapy programs. This study evaluated clinical reasoning readiness and confidence in third-year DPT students during clinical experiences with and without telehealth. Students’ clinical reasoning readiness and confidence were determined using the Physical Therapist Self-Efficacy (PTSE) score, self-confidence rating treating patients, and final APTA Clinical Performance Instrument (CPI) clinical reasoning and summative ratings. DPT students providing PT interventions using telehealth reported lower clinical reasoning self-efficacy (PTSE) when compared to traditional service-delivery. Confidence treating using telehealth was greater at the initial visit compared to subsequent visits, suggesting a lack of student readiness for providing subsequent telehealth visits. Final CPI ratings did not differ between DPT students with and without telehealth