Key result
Only ~15% of outpatient physical therapists routinely measure baseline blood pressure and heart rate.
Why the study?
Previous work demonstrated inadequate rates of and perceptions toward cardiovascular disease screening by physical therapists, prompting an assessment of current attitudes and behaviors in US outpatient orthopedic practice.
Cross-Sectional (n=1,812)
Despite the high prevalence of CVD risk factors in the outpatient orthopedic population, routine cardiovascular screening by physical therapists remains exceptionally low, highlighting a significant gap in clinical practice.
Low adoption of CV screening by PTs signals potential care gaps; leaves open whether targeted interventions improve uptake.
BACKGROUND: Screening the cardiovascular system is an important and necessary component of the physical therapist examination to ensure patient safety, appropriate referral, and timely medical management of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and risk factors. The most basic screening includes a measurement of resting blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR). Previous work demonstrated that rates of BP and HR screening and perceptions toward screening by physical therapists are inadequate. OBJECTIVE: The purpose was to assess the current attitudes and behaviors of physical therapists in the United States regarding the screening of patients for CVD or risk factors in outpatient orthopedic practice. DESIGN: This was a cross-sectional, online survey study. METHODS: Data were collected from an anonymous adaptive online survey delivered via an email list. RESULTS: A total of 1812 surveys were included in this analysis. A majority of respondents (n = 931; 51.38%) reported that at least half of their current caseload included patients either with diagnosed CVD or at moderate or greater risk of a future occurrence. A total of 14.8% of respondents measured BP and HR on the initial examination for each new patient. The most commonly self-reported barriers to screening were lack of time (37.44%) and lack of perceived importance (35.62%). The most commonly self-reported facilitators of routine screening were perceived importance (79.48%) and clinic policy (38.43%). Clinicians who managed caseloads with the highest CVD risk were the most likely to screen. LIMITATIONS: Although the sampling population included was large and representative of the profession, only members of the American Physical Therapy Association Orthopaedic Section were included in this survey. CONCLUSIONS: Despite the high prevalence of patients either diagnosed with or at risk for CVD, few physical therapists consistently included BP and HR on the initial examination. The results of this survey suggest that efforts to improve understanding of the importance of screening and modifications of clinic policy could be effective strategies for improving rates of HR and BP screening.
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Severin et al. (2019) conducted a cross-sectional in Outpatient orthopedic physical therapists (n=1,812). Survey on cardiovascular disease screening attitudes and behaviors was evaluated on Routine measurement of blood pressure and heart rate on the initial examination for each new patient. Only 14.8% of surveyed outpatient physical therapists reported consistently measuring resting blood pressure and heart rate on the initial examination for new patients.
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