Promoting research in physiotherapy: An undergraduate endeavour?

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the Canadian Physiotherapy Association's (CPA) promotion of research as it relates to the study of scientific enquiry (research methods). It is suggested that the most appropriate place for such study is in the undergraduate curriculum, and the authors outline the structure and objectives of the research methods course implemented at Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia. The course includes a mandatory research project, with an associated ethical evaluation, data processing/analysis, and seminar, poster and paper presentations. The extra workloads imposed on faculty members, as well as the extra costs to the university, are offset by the benefits the students derive from a realistic hands-on research experience. The authors note the importance of exposure to research orientations in other parts of the students' curricula, and point to alternative means of educating physiotherapists in the research process (through courses, collaboration on research projects, and professional congresses and publications). They conclude that incorporation of a research methods course within the undergraduate program not only assists in achieving the first priority of the CPA but also helps in producing physiotherapists better able to use a problem-solving approach to clinical practice.