The assessment of clinical competence of physiotherapists during and after the COVID-19 pandemic

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has created significant disruptions to life and work for most industries, including healthcare. While the physiotherapy profession has moved to using telehealth for the assessment and treatment of many patients during the pandemic, there is understandable hesitation about using online media for assessing the competence of physiotherapists who wish to be registered to practise. This editorial seeks to: explore various existing models of remotely assessing clinical competence; consider their suitability with respect to the assessment of overseas-qualified physiotherapists to ensure that this can continue in times of disruption, as experienced during the pandemic; and pose questions about whether this should become the ‘new normal’...