Roles and Tasks of Physiotherapists in Nursing Homes: A Survey.

Background and Purpose: Physiotherapists in nursing homes perform a diversity of roles and tasks. But the delivery of physiotherapy services varies widely between organizations and between individual physiotherapists. This depends on both organizational and personal factors. This study aims to inves...

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Publicado en:Journal of Geriatric Physical Therapy Vol. 49; no. 2; pp. 67 - 77
Autores principales: Sterke, Shanty, Nascimento da Cunha, Ana Paula, Voogt, Lennard, Goumans, Marleen
Formato: research tables/charts Journal Article
Publicado: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Apr-Jun2026
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
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      dt: Apr-Jun2026
      vid: 49
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      pub: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
      place: Baltimore, Maryland
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        atl: Roles and Tasks of Physiotherapists in Nursing Homes: A Survey.
      aug:
        au:
          Sterke, Shanty
          Nascimento da Cunha, Ana Paula
          Voogt, Lennard
          Goumans, Marleen
        affil: Research Centre Innovations in Care, Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
      sug:
        subj:
          Nursing Homes Netherlands
          Physical Therapists Netherlands
          Professional Role
          Scope of Practice
          Task Performance and Analysis
          Human
          Netherlands
          Cross Sectional Studies
          Convenience Sample
          Descriptive Statistics
          Data Analysis Software
          Surveys
          Male
          Female
          Adult
          Middle Age
          Adult: 19-44 years
          Middle Aged: 45-64 years
          Male
          Female
      ab: Background and Purpose: Physiotherapists in nursing homes perform a diversity of roles and tasks. But the delivery of physiotherapy services varies widely between organizations and between individual physiotherapists. This depends on both organizational and personal factors. This study aims to investigate to what extent physiotherapists in Dutch nursing homes agree on the scope and content of their professional roles and tasks. Methods: We performed a cross-sectional survey study of a convenience sample of physiotherapists in nursing homes. The questions were divided into five themes: (1) care and functional problems (falls, incontinence, physical strain, decubitus, inactivity/immobility, pain, problems with lying and sitting, the use of physical restraints, malnutrition and sarcopenia, overweight, behavioral problems, oedema, joint contractures), (2) referrals and accessibility, (3) assessments and examinations, (4) interventions and actions, and (5) organizational matters. We asked the participants to answer the questions on a five-point Likert scale. We defined consensus when ≥75% of the participants rated the question with a Likert-score of 4 or 5 or with a Likert-score of 1 or 2. Results and Discussion: Sixty-five physiotherapists returned the survey. They agreed that physiotherapists play an essential role in the management of prevention of falls, mobility problems, transfer problems, ergonomic advice, physical strain, pain, problems with sitting and lying, sarcopenia, and joint contractures. There was a discrepancy in consensus regarding what a physiotherapist should do in the specific cases versus what they actually do. Conclusion: Physiotherapists in nursing homes agreed they have an important role in a variety of care and functional problems. However, there was a difference between what needs to be done versus what is actually done by the physiotherapists. Future research should focus on the underlying reasons for this inconsistency.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype:
        research
        tables/charts
        Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
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