Use of standardised outcome measures among physiotherapists in French-speaking sub-Saharan Africa.
Abdoulaye Sawadogo, Emmanuel Segnon Sogbossi, Gauthier J Everard and 2 others
PMID 38322653WHAT IT FOUND
Among 241 physiotherapists in French-speaking sub-Saharan Africa, only 27% used standardised outcome measures all the time.
Lack of time (48%) and administrative support (36%) were the main barriers.
Key findings
01Only 27% of the 241 physiotherapists reported using standardised outcome measures all the time, while 35% reported using them most of the time.
02The most reported barriers were lack of time (48%) and lack of administrative support (36%).
03The most commonly named outcome measures were the Visual Analogue Scale (60%), goniometer (39%), and Functional Independence Measure (31%).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The survey was online only, so therapists without internet access or less comfortable with digital media may have been missed. Recruitment relied mainly on physiotherapy associations, so non-members may have been missed. The questionnaire was pilot tested, but formal reliability and validity testing were not reported. The sample was limited in some countries, so results may not represent all French-speaking sub-Saharan African countries. The survey reached nearly 10% of the targeted population, while studies from Ghana and Nigeria reported 16% and 19% participation rates. Responses were self-reported and anonymous, so actual practice was not observed. The design was cross-sectional, so it describes reported use at one time and cannot show that barriers caused low use.
Declared interests
The study reported no grants from public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the reported use of outcome measures as evidence that routine, high-quality measurement is happening. Only 27% used standardised outcome measures all the time, and the survey did not show that their use improved patient care.