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ARE WE UNITED? CLINICIANS RESPOND TO THE ENTRY LEVEL DPT. Roller, J; University of Mary, Bismarck ND. rollerj@umary.edu. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to discover how clinicians regard the issues that surround the entry level doctorate in physical therapy. SUBJECTS: Two hundred physical therapist clinicians who affiliate with the University of Mary for clinical education were surveyed. Sixty-three percent responded. Fifty-nine percent of the respondents were APTA members and 63% had a Bachelor’s degree. METHODS: A survey, personal interviews, and participant observation were used in this qualitative design. The survey was developed after personal interviews with key informants and was sent to all clinical sites affiliating with the University of Mary. Comments about each section of the survey were requested and received from nearly 40% of the respondents. ANALYSIS: Descriptive statistics, reported in percentages, were used in the analysis of each question. Results were correlated to determine which questions generated agreement. Results were also compared with demographic information. Written comments from clinicians were categorized into major themes and combined with the results of the survey to establish why clinicians responded the way they did. RESULTS: The majority (54%) of the clinicians surveyed did not agree with APTA’s 2020 vision statement that physical therapists will be doctors and only 30% agreed. Seventy percent do not think a rehabilitation therapist needs to be a doctor and 88% think that a graduate with a master’s degree is adequately prepared for practice. Physical therapists who are APTA members are more likely to agree with the doctoral degree. CONCLUSION: The majority of physical therapists in this survey are at odds with the direction of the physical therapy profession. FUNDING SOURCE: None.
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