Validity and Reliability of General Evaluation Tool for Clinical Training in Rehabilitation Disciplines

Objectives: One of the problems in the process of assessment and evaluation, especially of clinical training in rehabilitation disciplines, is the lack of an instrument with objective criteria for evaluation. Considering the effects of appropriate evaluation on quality assurance of clinical training, the aim of the present study was to design a valid and reliable tool for general evaluation of clinical training in rehabilitation disciplines. Methods: This study was a methodological research. Initially by literature review and also by holding a focus group discussion with professors of clinical training of rehabilitation disciplines who were recruited by convenient purposive sampling, the main indicators for evaluation of clinical education in those fields were determined. Then, after classification of the indicators and first evaluation tool was developed. The face validity and content validity of the tool were determined with the Lawasche's method and its reliability was determined with the test- retest method and Cronbakh's alpha coefficient in SPSS-19. Results: Content analysis of the focus group discussion resulted in 57 indices, classified in 5 categories (including: the educator, the Trainees, Administration of clinical training, field of clinical training and Evaluation of clinical training). Finally, the final tool was adjusted in two separate questionnaires. The correlation coefficient for the questionnaire of the clinical educators was 0.9, its Cronbakh's alpha coefficient was 0.88 and its content validity coefficient was 0.84. The correlation coefficient for the questionnaire of the students, was 0.7, its Cronbakh's alpha was 0.92 and its content validity coefficient was 0.81. Discussion: The tool designed for the evaluation of clinical training in rehabilitation disciplines has appropriate and acceptable validity and reliability.