A new five-course programme on Physiopedia Plus (Plus) explores how clinical reasoning shapes every stage of physiotherapy, from the first patient encounter through to discharge. Led by Larisa Hoffman and Tarina van der Stockt, the programme gives physiotherapists a structured way to understand, apply and refine the thinking that sits behind every clinical decision.
Clinical reasoning is something physiotherapists do constantly, yet it is rarely taught as a distinct skill. We are always weighing information, testing hypotheses, adjusting plans and deciding when to act, but the cognitive processes driving those decisions often go unexamined. The new Clinical Reasoning Programme from Plus brings that thinking into focus. It challenges the assumption that good decision-making simply comes with experience and positions clinical reasoning instead as a skill that can be learned, developed and refined throughout a career.
The five courses in this programme follow the natural flow of patient care from an introduction to clinical reasoning, building on each other from foundational concepts through to application across a full episode. A few things the programme covers that are worth highlighting:
- On assessment: the programme introduces hypothetico-deductive reasoning through the ICF and HOAC II frameworks alongside narrative reasoning, which approaches each patient as an individual with their own story, context and priorities. Used together, these strategies support an assessment that is both efficient and genuinely patient-centred.
- On care planning: translating findings into a meaningful plan requires more than technical knowledge. The programme looks at how to establish realistic prognoses using evidence-based indicators, how to engage patients in setting SMART goals and how to recognise the moments when rapid clinical judgment is needed to protect patient safety.
- On treatment and discharge: the programme introduces six reasoning strategies: scientific, intuitive, pragmatic, conditional, collaborative and ethical, and explores how they work together to support sound, responsive decision-making throughout the treatment phase, including the decision of when and how to end physiotherapy.
What the final course makes clear is that clinical reasoning is not a single moment or a single skill. Clinicians shift between reasoning strategies as a patient moves through care and knowing which approach to draw on at each stage is itself something that can be taught. The programme is also relevant for clinical educators and supervisors, with strategies for teaching clinical reasoning woven throughout.
Throughout, the emphasis is on a biopsychosocial, evidence-based approach, developing the ability to incorporate evidence into everyday decision-making, not just in theory but in practice.
The Clinical Reasoning programme is available now through a Plus subscription. If strengthening the thinking behind your clinical practice is a priority, this is a good place to start.
This article was written by one of our course instructors...
Tarina van der Stockt
PT (BphysT), DPT
Education Director Physiopedia Plus