The current and future physiotherapy workforce is not ready for the increased use of technology in practice: an observational study using the Technology Readiness Index.

Abstract

Questions: 1. Is the current and future physiotherapy workforce ready for the increased use of technology in practice? 2. Does the technology readiness differ between 4th year physiotherapy students and qualified physiotherapists? 3. Does the number of years of experience affect the technology readiness of physiotherapists? Design: Observational study using the Technology Readiness Index (TRI). Outcome measures: Respondents rated their agreement with each statement on a 5-point Likert scale, overall TRI scores and individual category averages were analysed. Participants: 205 respondents including 4th year physiotherapy students and qualified physiotherapists. Results: Mean overall TRI score was neutral (3.16 (0.52)). No statistically significant differences were found regarding the overall TRI score across the sample. Students and newly qualified physiotherapists showed statistically significantly higher innovativeness than highly experienced physiotherapists. Discomfort was statistically significantly more in highly experienced physiotherapists than newly qualified physiotherapists. Students showed statistically significantly more insecurity than qualified physiotherapists as a whole group and specifically more than experienced physiotherapists. Conclusion: The neutral overall TRI score suggests that respondents are not ready for the increased use of technology in practice. Individual category analysis has provided insight into the attitudes of the current and future physiotherapy workforce to inform curriculum changes and training needs. Students and newly qualified staff scoring highly in the innovativeness category indicates that universities are preparing students and graduates well with regards to this aspect. The insecurity shown by students and discomfort shown by highly experienced staff are additional points to consider when planning university curriculum and staff training.