Physical therapy patients' perceptions of their relationships with health care professionals

One of the primary goals of physical therapy is to assist patients to return to as independent and meaningful a life as possible. There is good evidence that involving patients in decision making facilitates rehabilitation. Our purpose was to inquire of patients how they perceived their roles and relationships with their health care professionals with a focus on decision making. One hundred and nine patients in three health care facilities in one city participated in the study. One-on-one semi-structured interviews were used. The results are summarised using descriptive and comparative statistics. Responses are quite varied and there are significant differences among different cultural sub-groups. The general public needs much more information about what to expect when they go to physical therapy. Patients need individualised analysis by their therapist and other health care professionals of how they view their role in their own health care and individualised instruction on how to assume more responsibility for their care.