Views of Chartered Physiotherapists on the Psychological Content of Their Practice: A Follow-Up Survey in the UK
in Journal of Sport RehabilitationObjective:
To assess, on a national level, the views of chartered physiotherapists with regard to the psychological content of physiotherapy practice.
Design:
A postal survey to a national list of sport injury and physiotherapy clinics was employed.
Participants:
A total of 361 responses were included in the descriptive statistical and qualitative analyses.
Measurements:
The Physiotherapist and Sport Psychology Questionnaire (PSPQ).
Results:
On average, physiotherapists felt that athletes were psychologically affected 83% of the time when injured. Key psychological characteristics were also identified in athletes who cope/do not cope successfully with their injuries. Physiotherapists reported using psychological techniques in their work and expressed the need for further training in the field. Only 24.1% of the physiotherapists stated having accesses to accredited sport psychologists.
Conclusions:
Results suggest that UK physiotherapists possess practical experiences and good awareness for psychological aspects of injuries and acknowledge the importance of treating a range of psychological conditions.
Monna Arvinen-Barrow and Brian Hemmings are with the Sport Psychology Dept. at the University of Northampton, UK. E-mail: monna.arvinen-barrow@northampton.ac.uk. Daniel Weigand is with Achieve Acumen, Inc., Fort Myers, FL 33901. Caryl Becker is with the Olympic Medical Institute in Harrow, UK. Lynn Booth is a Freelance Chartered Physiotherapist in the UK.
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