Kalayawadee Jantaro. The Apprehension and application of clinical practic guideline of physical therapists in Thailand. Master's Degree(Physical Therapy). Mahidol University. : Mahidol University, 2009.
The Apprehension and application of clinical practic guideline of physical therapists in Thailand
Abstract:
Nowadays, clinical practice guidelines (CPG) have an important role in the
health care services of Thailand. However, the situation of apprehension and
application concerning the CPGs by physical therapists who are working in hospitals
has not been researched. Therefore by using a questionnaire, this study surveyed the
knowledge and attitudes of physical therapists as well as their ability to apply CPGs in
hospitals.
The questionnaires were mailed to 120 physical therapists who are
currently working in hospital settings. The survey was conducted between August and
September, 2008. 101 questionnaires were returned (84.2% response rate). These
results showed that more than 70% of the respondents had a clear knowledge
regarding the definition of evidence-based practice but did not understand the
definition, characteristics and content of CPGs. In addition, more than 50% of the
respondents had a positive attitude towards CPGs. About 61% of the respondents had
at least one physical therapy guideline in the department. About 84% of the
respondents had a department that reported regular CPG use. However, about 50% of
the physical therapists did not use CPGs. The possible reasons for this were lack of
proper knowledge of CPGs, a limited amount of time and difficulty in accessing
resources. Therefore, important factors in successful use of CPGs would be to promoted
proper understanding of CPGs and convenient access the available resources.