The physiotherapist-patient interaction is the medium through which physiotherapy is practiced. However, to date little physiotherapy research literature reports on physiotherapists' interactive behaviours in clinical practice. The objectives of this study were to explore, interpret and describe experienced cardiorespiratory physiotherapists' understandings of their interactive behaviours when treating chronically breathless patients and to make recommendations for practice. The study is located in the interpretive research paradigm. It has adopted a hermeneutic phenomenological approach underpinned by a relativist ontological stance and Gadamerian philosophy (1975/2004). Five experienced cardiorespiratory physiotherapists' were video recorded in a natural treatment setting with a chronically breathless patient. Data were generated through a video-cued recall and reflection, and a follow-up interview with each physiotherapist. Three themes were derived from the physiotherapists' accounts: 'Creating a facilitative space', 'Accessing and attending to your world' and 'Sharing my world'. These were considered to be key dimensions of physiotherapists' understandings of their interactive behaviours. The concept of 'Merging Worlds - facilitating the journey to a shared understanding and purpose, and safe achievement of purpose' draws together these key dimensions and represents the nature of the interactional behaviours of experienced physiotherapists when managing chronically breathless patients. The challenge of explicating tacit practice knowledge was observed during the process of data generation. This issue was considered alongside the thematic interpretation and the concept of 'Merging Worlds' to inform the development of a new model of physiotherapy practice: Mindful, Reciprocal Interaction. A series of questions to facilitate explication of, and critical reflection on interactive behaviours were developed for use by physiotherapists to enhance their interactive behaviours during encounters with patients. The findings of this study provide new knowledge for physiotherapy practice.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:590052 |
| Date | January 2011 |
| Creators | Henderson, Bernadette |
| Publisher | University of Brighton |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | https://research.brighton.ac.uk/en/studentTheses/a532f5d8-1368-4708-8fed-22d9a3d612fd |
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