The experiences of physiotherapists treating people with dementia who fracture their hip

BMC Geriatrics

Research Article

AJ Hall¹  R Watkins¹  VA Goodwin¹  IA Lang¹  R Endacott² 

[1] NIHR CLAHRC South West Peninsula, University of Exeter Medical School, Exeter, UK;School of Nursing and Midwifery (Faculty of Health and Human Sciences), Plymouth University, Plymouth, UK;

关键词: Physiotherapist;    Physiotherapy;    Dementia;    Hip fracture;    Experiences;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12877-017-0474-8

 received in 2016-12-02, accepted in 2017-04-01,  发布年份 2017

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundIt is estimated that people with dementia are approximately three times more likely to fracture their hip than sex and age matched controls. A report by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy found that this population have poor access to rehabilitation as inpatients and in the community. A recent scoping review found a paucity of research in this area, indeed there has been no qualitative research undertaken with physiotherapists.In order to address this evidence gap, the aim of this current study was to explore the experiences of physiotherapists treating this population.MethodsSemi-structured interviews with physiotherapists were undertaken in order to gain an in-depth understanding of how they manage this population. Physiotherapists were recruited from all over the UK and a purposive sampling strategy was employed. Thematic analysis was utilised.ResultsA total of 12 physiotherapists were interviewed, at which stage data saturation was reached as no new themes were emerging. The participants had a broad range of experience both in physical and mental health settings. Analysis identified three separate themes: challenges, “thinking outside the box” and realising potential.Physiotherapists felt significant pressures and challenges regarding many aspects of the management of this population. Mainly this was the result of pressures placed on them by guidelines and targets that may not be achievable or appropriate for those with dementia. The challenges and importance of risk taking was also highlighted for this population with an appreciation that standard treatment techniques may need adapting. “Rehabilitation potential” was highlighted as an important consideration, but challenging to determine.ConclusionInterventions for the management of people with dementia and hip fracture need to consider that a traditional biomedical physiotherapy approach may not be the most appropriate approach to use with this population. However physiotherapists reported feeling pressurised to conform to a biomedical approach.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s). 2017