Knowledge, awareness and use of current practice of palliative care amongst physiotherapists

Abstract

Background: Recently, there has been a marked increase in the incidence of cancer, HIV, and other noncommunicable diseases globally. Thus, the demand for palliative care (PC), including end-of-life care, continues to grow worldwide. Physiotherapy has an important role in PC as it aims to alleviate symptoms and improve quality of life by optimising independent levels of function.Objective: To assess the level of knowledge, awareness and current practice of PC amongst Nigerian physiotherapists in clinical practice.Method: Our study used a cross-sectional descriptive census-based method and recruited practising physiotherapists in Nigeria. An electronic questionnaire was used to collect data over 12 weeks, comprising 36 semistructured questions in four domains: personal information, knowledge, awareness and current practices regarding PC. Data were analysed using a pragmatist paradigm.Results: Of the 426 physiotherapists who participated, 50% (n = 213) had a postgraduate degree, 49.5% (n = 211) had a bachelor’s degree and 0.5% (n = 2) had a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree. The results also indicate that 73.9% (n = 315) of the participants had sufficient knowledge about PC, 80.5% (n = 343) had a sufficient level of awareness about PC and 66.7% (n = 284) were using current clinical practices in the rehabilitation of critically ill patients or those with chronic conditions.Conclusion: It was concluded that most Nigerian physiotherapists had sufficient knowledge and awareness about PC and were involved in the management of patients requiring PC physiotherapy.Clinical implication: It can be understood that a large proportion of Nigerian physiotherapists have clinical experience managing patients requiring PC, despite inadequate formal training in this field.