Simulation-based holistic education in physiotherapy interns to increase empathy toward older adults and individuals with disabilities: a feasibility prospective study

Background: With the annually increasing ratio of individuals with disabilities in an aged society, clinical clerkships for physiotherapy interns should provide more than just knowledge and skills. The cultivation of interns’ empathy and positive attitudes toward patients to meet future job requirements is essential. In this study, we explored the effect of simulation-based holistic health-care education on physiotherapy interns’ empathy, attitudes, and knowledge. Methods: : A parallel-group design. Thirty physiotherapy interns in a medical institution were enrolled as participants. The experimental and control groups each had 15 participants. Both groups received standard clinical training. However, the experimental group participated in an additional simulation-based empathy enhancement program. The pretest and posttest measured the Jefferson Scale of Empathy, Kogan’s Attitudes toward Old People Scale, Attitudes Towards Elderly Scale, Knowledge about Aging scale, Knowledge of Situation of Older People, Perceptions of Working with Older People, and Care Willingness scale. Results: : After the experimental group received 9 weeks intervention, the experimental group had a 6.4 points improvement on the Jefferson Scale of Empathy ( p =0.001), a 7.7 points improvement on the Kogan’s Attitudes toward Old People Scale ( p =0.002), a 3.5 points improvement on the Attitudes Towards Elderly Scale ( p = 0.002), a 2.5 points marginal improvement on the Knowledge about Aging ( p =0.055), a 4.5 points nonsignificant improvement on the Knowledge of Situation of Older People ( p <0.001), a 2.1 points nonsignificant improvement on the Perceptions of Working with Older People ( p =0.046), and a 0.5 points nonsignificant improvement on the CW ( p =0.723), Conclusion: The simulation-based holistic health-care education intervention significantly improved physiotherapy interns’ empathy, knowledge, and attitudes.