An observational study of Australian private practice physiotherapy consultations to explore the prescription of self-management strategies.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to explore the types of self-management strategies prescribed; the number of strategies and the overall length of time allocated to self-management prescription, by consultation type and by injury location, in physiotherapy consultations.

METHODS: A cross-sectional, observational study of 113 physiotherapist-patient consultations was undertaken. Regression analyses were used to determine whether consultation type and injury location were associated with the number of strategies prescribed and the length/fraction of time spent on self-management.

RESULTS: A total of 108 patients (96%) were prescribed at least one self-management strategy - commonly exercise and advice. The mean length of time spent on self-management was 5.80 min. Common injury locations were the neck (n = 40) and lower back (n = 39). No statistically significant associations were observed between consultation type or injury location for either outcome (number of strategies and the length/fraction of time allocated to self-management prescription).

CONCLUSION: Physiotherapists regularly spend time prescribing self-management strategies such as exercise, advice, and the use of heat or ice to patients receiving treatment linked to a range of injury locations. This suggests that self-management is considered to be an important adjunct to in-clinic physiotherapy. The practice implications of this are that clinicians should reflect on how self-management strategies can be used to maximize patient outcomes, and whether the allocation of consultation time to self-management is likely to optimize patient adherence to each strategy.