In Quebec, physiotherapists are getting involved in treating patients a lot earlier in the process of their care ‑ and that's a good thing, experts say.
“The idea isn’t that patients shouldn’t seen by doctors but that physiotherapists can be the first point of contact and begin treatment without waiting for the doctor,” said François Desmeules, a professor at Université de Montréal’s School of Rehabilitation and head of its advanced-practice physiotherapy program.
From emergency departments to family medicine groups, advanced practice physiotherapy—where physiotherapists play a greater role in care management and decision-making—is increasingly part of front-line care, much like specialized nurse practitioners.
The benefits are particularly evident at pain clinics, where wait times can be long. One example where thid can be seen is the Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal's chronic-pain management clinic.
“We have a long waiting list and limited resources, so we wanted to improve our patient care,” said François Dubé, an associate clinical professor at UdeM and physiotherapist at the clinic, where an advanced-practice physiotherapy model has been documented in a new study.
The research resuls were published in March in Physical & Occupational Therapy in Geriatrics.
