ARTICLE
Continuing Professional Education ( CPE ) needs
Respondents were asked to indicate how much they agreed or disagreed with a series of statements regarding their CPE needs on five-point Likert scales ( strongly disagree = 1 , disagree = 2 , neither agree nor disagree = 3 , agree = 4 , strongly agree = 5 ).
Figure 4 . Responses to questions on telehealth , e-health and infection control
n = 307 , 25 % Strongly agree n = 194 , 17.8 % n = 226 , 20.4 %
Agree n = 199 , 18 % Neither agree nor disagree n = 330 , 30.3 % n = 290 , 26.2 % n = 542 , 49.5 % n = 496 , 45.5 % n = 495 , 44.7 %
• Almost two-thirds ( n = 693 , 63.1 %) of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with the statement , ATMS offers CPE opportunities in the modalities I practice ; 23.4 % ( n = 257 ) neither agreed nor disagreed and 13.4 % ( n = 148 ) disagreed or strongly disagreed .
• Responses were similar for the statement Non-clinical training is relevant to my practice ( e . g . business management , marketing ), with 61.4 % ( n = 676 ) agreeing or strongly agreeing , 28.9 % ( n = 318 ) neither agreeing nor disagreeing , and 9.8 % ( n = 108 ) disagreeing or strongly disagreeing .
• Responses to the statement , I find it easy to meet the 20 points of CPE per year required , were more evenly spread . Almost one-third ( n = 349 , 31.6 %) neither agreed nor disagreed , 44.9 % ( n = 496 ) agreed or strongly agreed , and 23.5 % ( n = 259 ) disagreed or strongly disagreed .
• The majority of respondents agreed with the statement , Attending webinars is a convenient way of staying up to date with ongoing training : 86.2 % ( n = 952 ) chose strongly agree or agree .
• The majority of respondents agreed with the statement , Staying up to date with the latest developments in clinical training and evidence is very important to my practice : 85.7 % ( n = 944 ) chose strongly agree or agree .
Disagree
Strongly disagree n = 32 , 2.9 % n = 55 , 5 % n = 75 , 6.8 %
n = 16 , 1.5 % n = 16 , 1.5 % n = 22 , 2 %
Telehealth , e-health and infection control
Due to the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic , two statements on telehealth ( e-health ) and one on infection control were included in the survey . Members were asked to indicate their agreement or disagreement with the statements on five-point Likert scales ( strongly disagree = 1 , disagree = 2 , neither agree nor disagree = 3 , agree = 4 , strongly agree = 5 ). The majority of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with each statement , as can be seen in Figure 4 .
Suggestions for CPE courses
Accessibility Many responses showed there is concern with the accessibility and quality of CPE courses . Members said they wanted to see improved accessibility through having more frequent course options , lower cost or cost-free options , the option to earn more points for more intensive courses , or increased on-line options ( or recorded versions ). The biggest message was that members felt ATMS should be open to allowing CPE points to accrue from other accredited associations or organisations . Many also mentioned that First Aid and CPR should be counted towards CPE , and others
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 Training in infection control should be included in CPE programs for all accredited ATMS practitioners
Training in telemedicine and e-health should be included in education programs for natural medicine students
Training in telemedicine and e-health should be included in CPE programs for all accredited ATMS practitioners . requested better quality courses with new presenters , as they were tired of hearing the same ( albeit high quality ) presenters . Furthermore , other members asked that face-to-face courses be offered more frequently in regional areas .
New Skills and Revision Members were particularly interested in learning and reviewing a wide array of skills including , but not limited to , myofascial release , acupuncture , aromatherapy , homeopathy , Bowen therapy , dry needling , reflexology , somatic work , working with children and working with clients with special needs . Quite a few members , who are remedial massage therapists , were concerned that remedial massage is being replaced by myotherapy . Some acupuncturists felt their modality was under-represented .
Business Skills Members were mainly interested in learning how to develop their businesses through the use of social media , marketing , websites , blogs and other means of technology-based marketing . They also expressed interest in learning correct digital note-taking procedures . Some wanted to learn ways to implement better workplace health and safety measures and infectious disease controls .
70 | vol27 | no2 | JATMS