HIV and rehabilitation: development of a conceptual framework for curriculum planning

The overall purpose of this paper is to present the development of a conceptual framework of existing HIV curricula and educational resources on to inform future curriculum planning for the education of rehabilitation professionals on rehabilitation in the context of HIV/AIDS. We conducted a scoping review of the literature from 1980 onwards to identify existing HIV curricula and resources used with current or future health professionals. Preliminary findings were reviewed with a national Advisory Committee and a framework was developed to inform future curriculum planning. The Conceptual Framework of Existing HIV Curricula for Health Professionals classified curricula based on whether it was interprofessional or uniprofessional, and targeted to rehabilitation professionals or more broadly included other health professionals. This framework consisted of four intersecting components that represented different types of curricula: (a) interprofessional HIV curricula specific to rehabilitation professionals, (b) uniprofessional HIV curricula specific to rehabilitation professionals, (c) interprofessional HIV curricula for health professionals, and (d) uniprofessional HIV curricula for health professionals. Evidence from the framework suggested that an interprofessional HIV curriculum designed for rehabilitation professionals may be an ideal model from which to build future HIV rehabilitation curricula. In summary, a range of HIV curricula exist that vary in the type of educational approach and the range of health professionals targeted. Future development, implementation, and evaluation of an interprofessional education curriculum will help to increase knowledge and capacity among current and future rehabilitation professionals so that they may better meet the needs of people living with HIV/AIDS in Canada.