Learning when teleassessment can be trusted: A qualitative study in physiotherapy education

INTRODUCTION: Digital technologies are increasingly embedded in health professions education, requiring students not only to perform technology-mediated practices, but also to judge when such practices can be trusted. Remote functional assessment via videoconferencing exemplifies this challenge; however, there is limited understanding of how students perceive its trustworthiness and judge its appropriateness during professional training. This study aimed to explore how physiotherapy students make sense of remote functional assessment during training, including its appropriateness and perceived trustworthiness, and to identify the educational, practical, and contextual factors shaping their professional judgement in this context. METHODS: A qualitative descriptive study with an interpretive orientation used focus groups. Twenty-three third-year physiotherapy students completed a two-week blended programme combining face-to-face instruction with remote administration of the Timed Up and Go (TUG) and Five Times Sit-to-Stand (5STS) tests. Data were analysed using inductive reflexive thematic analysis following Braun and Clarke. RESULTS: Four themes were identified: (1) remote assessment as a conditionally legitimate but secondary practice; (2) negotiating perceived reliability in technology-mediated assessment; (3) the need for preparation and structured educational support; and (4) motivation and perceived clinical realism as modulators of engagement. Students' accounts suggested that remote assessment was considered appropriate primarily in situations of necessity, while face-to-face assessment remained the reference standard. Students' confidence in the trustworthiness of remote assessment was shaped by technological, environmental, and interactional conditions. DISCUSSION: Teleassessment was experienced not as a straightforward extension of face-to-face practice, but as a professional activity whose appropriateness and perceived trustworthiness were contingent on technological, environmental, and interactional conditions. These findings suggest that physiotherapy students may benefit from educational approaches that explicitly address when remote assessment may be appropriate, how it can be adapted, and when face-to-face examination remains necessary.