Education Scoping Project
Global status of chiropractic education research: a scoping review
Abstract (current draft 2-18-2024)
Objective: The objective of this scoping review was to map the volume and nature of chiropractic education research relating to chiropractic learners and programs worldwide.
Introduction: The World Health Organization recognizes the need to increase the quantity and training of the health workforce to address community and population health goals. Information about chiropractic education research is needed to inform education research priorities and assist with preparing a stronger chiropractic workforce to address world health goals.
Inclusion criteria: Publications in the indexed literature included those related to chiropractic students, graduates, academics (faculty/administration/staff), and programs in any chiropractic education setting, which focused on chiropractic education (ie, general acquisition of knowledge, skills, and attitudes) and training (ie, practical knowledge, skills, and attitudes specific to a profession) of chiropractic students or chiropractors anywhere in the world. All research designs (qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods) and literature reviews were included.
Methods: This scoping review was conducted according the JBI methodology for scoping reviews and followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). We searched MEDLINE (PubMed), PubMed Central (PubMed), Bookshelf (via PubMed), Scopus, the Cumulated Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL via EBSCO), Index to Chiropractic Literature (ICL), Biblioteca Virtual em Saúde (BVS), and Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) from their inception to 5 and 6, November 2023 with no language limits. Documents were assessed and data were extracted using the inclusion criteria by paired independent reviewers in Covidence. Data were analyzed in Excel and organized into topics.
Results: The search resulted in 7494 documents, after deduplication, 5041 were screened for relevance, of which 667 were selected for full-text review. From these, 598 were selected for data extraction. Major topics included 1) student knowledge and cognitive competencies; 2) student functional competencies; 3) student personal and behavioral competencies; 4) student values and ethical competencies; and 5) program-relevant education research. The 598 studies showed a spectrum of designs including the majority being quantitative (391) followed by qualitative (43), mixed methods (40), literature review (11), descriptive report (91), and commentary (22).
Conclusions: This scoping review demonstrated that the body of indexed publications related to chiropractic education and training has breadth and includes topics related to learner competencies in knowledge, skills, and attitudes as well as topics focused on chiropractic programs. The body of literature demonstrates that chiropractic programs are engaging in collecting, analyzing, and distributing assessment data and reporting results in the literature. We observed a trend in the broadening of topics within chiropractic education research, which may reflect the evolving complexities and expanding scope of chiropractic practice, resulting in a more comprehensive educational approach. We have provided a map of the professional competencies that covers the chiropractic educational body of knowledge, which supports the inclusion of chiropractic as a contributor to the global workforce. Thus, the findings of this study have great potential and application to practice, policy, and chiropractic education.
Keywords: Benchmarking; Chiropractic; Health Occupations; Health Workforce; Professional Education
Registration: https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/9B3AP
Scoping Review Resources:
Training
The Topic Tool was built using the model and metacompetencies described by Cheetham G, Chivers G. Towards a holistic model of professional competence. Journal of European industrial training. 1996 Jul 1;20(5):20-30.
The primary purpose of this Step 1 training for our Chiropractic Education Research Scoping Review is to make sure everyone is on the same page with inclusion/exclusion and data extraction and to help everyone feel more comfortable with using the process and tools. Overall, everyone did very well. The amount of agreement on some of the items was outstanding! We are looking forward to finishing the training so we can get started on the scoping review!
This is a report of our findings for Step 2 training for our Chiropractic Education Research Scoping Review (that was due August 6). The primary purpose of this training is to give you feedback and to make sure everyone is on the same page with inclusion/exclusion and data extraction using the Topic Tool. This will also help everyone feel more comfortable with using the process and tools. We are looking forward to finishing the training so we can get started on the scoping review using Covidence! Thank you all for your participation!
This is a report of our findings for Step 3 training for our Chiropractic Education Research Scoping Review (that was due August 13). As the authorship team, we continue to improve. The scores on the inclusion/exclusion exercise are fantastic. The categorization using the Topic Tool is improving as well. Please read through the report, which contains helpful information about the Topic Tool, so that we may continue to improve in our next exercise.