Changes in physiotherapy students' beliefs and attitudes about low back pain through pre-registration training.

No control group was used, so the study cannot show that the module caused the belief changes rather than other factors. Students answered anonymously, so the researchers could not track the same individuals over time and used unpaired tests. Only the 2018 to 2020 cohort had data at all study time points, and the first-year and third-year comparisons were limited. The third-year module also included persistent pain content, so the long-term effect of the spinal pain module alone cannot be separated from later teaching. The outcome was self-reported belief, not clinical decision making or patient outcome. The 2020 module was online and lacked practical manual therapy and simulated-patient training, so online delivery cannot be compared fairly with face-to-face delivery. The students came from one Swiss pre-registration program, so the size and pattern of change may not apply elsewhere.

Do not conclude that this module improves patient care or that online teaching is better than face-to-face teaching. The study measured anonymous students’ self-reported beliefs, had no control group, and the design did not allow a comparison between online and face-to-face modules.