A Mixed Methods Exploratory Study of Availability, Compliance, and Inclusivity of Technical Standards in United States Professional Physical Therapist Education Programs

IMPORTANCE: The representation of students with disabilities (SWD) in physical therapist education programs is lower than in other health care education programs. Technical standards (TS), the non-academic requirements for admission to health care education programs, may impact access to education for SWD. However, the availability and language of TS has not been comprehensively assessed. OBJECTIVE: Describe the availability and language of TS in physical therapist education programs. DESIGN: This study was conducted as a mixed methods online exploratory study. Phase 1 collected TS and described the availability and ease of locating TS. Phase 2 analyzed TS compliance and inclusivity using a Critical Disability Studies framework. SETTING: The study setting was online, with physical therapist education program websites reviewed as a part of the data collection. PARTICIPANTS: Websites from United States Commission on Accreditation of Physical Therapy accredited physical therapist education programs as of March 2023 (N = 260) were included in the study. MAIN OUTCOME(S) AND MEASURE(S): Phase 1: Analyzed TS for availability and ease of locating. Phase 2: Analyzed available TS for willingness to provide accommodations, nature of compliance with legal obligations and locus of responsibility for providing accommodations. RESULTS: Phase 1: 75% of programs had TS available and 77.9% of TS were easy to locate. Phase 2: 45% of TS were equivocal in willingness to accommodate. Most TS were compliant (83%). No programs identified the student as responsible for providing accommodations and 13 (7.6%) described a shared process between the school and the student. CONCLUSIONS: Findings show some movement towards disability inclusion and offer areas to address TS. More research is needed to understand the impact of TS on SWD applying to physical therapist education programs. RELEVANCE: Including SWD in physical therapist education programs may transform the workforce to meet the need for more physical therapists as well as potentially mitigate health disparities.