Consenso nacional sobre los contenidos de Grado en Fisioterapia cardiorrespiratoria: estudio Delphi

Background and objectives: The curricula of the Bachelor's degree in physiotherapy must respond to the current demands of physiotherapy clients in the main areas of their professional practice and prepare physiotherapists to act in a challenging and complex context. The aim of this study is to elaborate and validate a list of knowledge (syllabus) about cardiorespiratory physiotherapy in Bachelor's degree programs. Material and methods: A digital survey conducted a three-round Delphi study between February and March 2021. A group of 14 experts in cardiorespiratory physiotherapy from all over Spain and with different professional profiles were contacted. To establish the degree of agreement in the consultation rounds, the free-marginal multirater kappa statistical index was used, requiring at least 70% of consensus. Cohen's kappa statistic (K) was used to analyze the responses’ stability. Results: Hundred percentage of responses were obtained in the three rounds of consultation conducted with the expert panel. At the end of the process, a syllabus made up of 11 thematic sections and 48 items was reached. An average of 90.64% of agreement and a stability in the responses of K = 0.57 (p < 0.001), which equates to moderate agreement, was achieved. Conclusions: This syllabus validated by 14 respiratory and cardiac physiotherapy experts, determines the contents that should be part of physiotherapy in Bachelor's degree programs. This knowledge is crucial to address the rehabilitation necessities of cardiorespiratory alterations in a challenging and complex context, according to a contemporary approach of physiotherapy.