Assessing Professional Students' Application of the International Classification of Functioning, Health, and Disability Model and Patient-Reported Outcome Measures During Patient Care

Context The International Classification of Functioning, Health, and Disability (ICF) model and patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) are concepts that must be addressed in professional education. Objective Describe a class assignment that allows students to integrate the concepts of the ICF model and PROMs into actual patient care. Background Adult learners, including professional athletic training students, thrive on learning experiences where they can apply concepts and integrate new knowledge with existing knowledge. In addition, existing research suggests that most athletic trainers are not integrating PROMs into their clinical practice; therefore, students are most likely not seeing the use of PROMs during clinical education. Faculty can facilitate the application of the ICF model and PROMs into patient care with a course-based assignment. Description The assignment requires students to use the ICF model as an assessment tool with an actual patient, which helps shape their therapeutic interventions. Students recorded baseline and follow-up PROMs with this patient over a time period of at least 3 weeks while documenting their interventions and the patient's change over time. Students addressed reflection prompts in the assignment by describing their successes and challenges, in addition to describing their future plans for integrating the ICF model and PROMs into their clinical practice. Clinical Advantage(s) Students described this assignment as beneficial because it helped them treat their patients more holistically. Students self-reported increased knowledge and confidence with using the ICF model and PROMs in their clinical practice. Students described a plan to integrate these concepts into their clinical practice in a limited fashion. Conclusion(s) Faculty may consider integrating an applied, patient-based assignment such as this to assess students' application of the ICF model and PROMs to an actual patient. This assignment can also be easily condensed or expanded to fit different courses, student background knowledge, and assessment of different curricular content standards.