Knowledge, Perception, and Belief of Physical Therapy Students in Clinical Practice Guidelines
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Background: Clinical practice guidelines are essential tools for supporting evidence-based decision-making, improving care consistency, and reducing unwarranted variation in physical therapy practice. Students’ knowledge, perceptions, and beliefs regarding these guidelines may influence their readiness to apply evidence-based recommendations during clinical training and future professional practice. Objective: This study aimed to assess the knowledge, perceptions, and beliefs of physical therapy students regarding clinical practice guidelines. Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted among 88 physical therapy students at the University of Lahore Teaching Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan, using a structured questionnaire. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 26. Categorical variables were summarized as frequencies and percentages. Results: Most participants were aged 21–25 years (93.2%), with a nearly balanced gender distribution. Overall, 81.8% had heard of clinical practice guidelines, but only 28.4% correctly identified them as evidence-based recommendations for clinical practice. Extensive training in accessing and interpreting guidelines was reported by 36.4%, while 42.0% reported only brief training. Most students agreed or strongly agreed that guidelines are essential for high-quality physical therapy care (67.1%), reported confidence in applying them (75.0%), and believed they reduce variability in clinical practice (72.7%). Conclusion: Physical therapy students showed high awareness and generally positive beliefs regarding clinical practice guidelines, but accurate conceptual understanding and depth of training were limited. Structured guideline-focused education is needed to improve evidence-based clinical readiness.
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