Abstract
[Purpose] The 2:1 or 3:1 clinical placement model (two or three students placed with one clinical educator) has been common in overseas physiotherapy clinical education. The purpose of this review was to demonstrate the effects, advantages and disadvantages of the 2:1 model through evaluating previous papers. [Methods] Papers that were published after 1990 and demonstrated the effect of the 2:1 model with physiotherapy students were examined. MEDLINE and CINAHL were used for the search. Six papers, three quantitative studies and three qualitative studies, were selected. [Results] All papers demonstrated the effect of the 2:1 model. The main advantages of the 2:1 model were collaborative learning and peer support. In addition, one paper suggested that the 2:1 model has more advantages and fewer disadvantages compared to the traditional 1:1 model. Meanwhile, many papers suggest that different academic levels and personalities of students may be serious disadvantages for the 2:1 model. [Conclusion] Considering the results, the effect of the 2:1 clinical placement model may be demonstrated. However, small sample size, the limited number of clinical facilities and the small number of studies make it hard to confirm the effect of the 2:1 model. Improvement of the study methodology and an increase in the number of studies are necessary to improve the evidence level for the 2:1 model. In addition, a 2:1 clinical placement model study directed at Japanese physiotherapy students will be needed.
