129 - The Impact of Remote Anatomy Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic on Doctor of Physical Therapy Students’ Learning and Clinical Performance

Poster Board Number: 129
There are separate poster presentation times for odd and even posters.
Odd poster #s – first hour
Even poster #s – second hour

Abstract Body : Introduction and Objective. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, anatomy instruction quickly switched to remote/online formats, but the full impact of those changes is unclear. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the effect of modifications to our Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) vertically integrated anatomy curriculum on: 1. students’ perceptions of their ability to apply anatomy knowledge in clinical courses and rotations; and 2. students’ performance in clinical courses, rotations, and on the license examination.
Materials and Methods. This mixed methods study included surveys to assess students’ perceptions of their ability to apply anatomy knowledge for clinical performance. Student performance on musculoskeletal clinical practical examinations, orthopedic clinical rotations, and the license examination was assessed by cohort. Responses to survey questions about anatomy course features also were assessed.
Results. DPT students (N=268) from 2 cohorts/academic year across the classes of 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 were included. Survey response rates ranged from 36%-81%. Students who had the first trimester anatomy courses in-person rated their ability to apply their anatomy knowledge clinically more positively than those who had them remotely (84.6% vs. 63.3%). Trimesters 3-5 clinical performance pass rates were minimally affected by anatomy course format (98% vs. 97%), but the first-time pass rate on the national license examination dropped from 98.5 to 90.9 for students who took advanced anatomy (trimester 6) remotely. Students preferred in-person activities to remote instruction or learning assessments (47.5% vs. 31.4% vs. 21.1%, respectively), with dissection valued for enhancing retention and 3-D, visual, and tactile understanding.
Conclusion. Although DPT students favored in-person over remote anatomy instruction for enhancing clinical application abilities, their clinical and license examination performance likely depends on a combination of factors.
Significance. Given the increase in hybrid DPT programs, the impact of anatomy course format warrants further investigation.