Experiences of physiotherapists working with adults living with Long COVID in Canada: a qualitative study

Abstract

Objectives: To explore experiences of physiotherapists working with adults living with Long COVID in Canada.

Design: Cross-sectional descriptive qualitative study involving online semi-structured interviews.

Participants: We recruited physiotherapists in Canada who self-identified as having clinically treated one or more adults living with Long COVID in the past year.

Data collection: Using an interview guide, we inquired about physiotherapists' knowledge of Long COVID, assessment and treatment experiences, perspectives on physiotherapists' roles, contextual and implementation factors influencing rehabilitative outcomes, and their recommendations for Long COVID rehabilitation. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using a group-based thematic analytical approach. We administered a demographic questionnaire to describe sample characteristics.

Results: 13 physiotherapists from five provinces participated; most were women (n=8; 62%) and practised in urban settings (n=11; 85%). Participants reported variable amounts of knowledge of existing guidelines and experiences working with adults living with Long COVID in the past year. Physiotherapists characterised their experiences working with adults living with Long COVID as a dynamic process involving: (1) a disruption to the profession (encountering a new patient population and pivoting to new models of care delivery), followed by (2) a cyclical process of learning curves and evolving roles of physiotherapists working with persons living with Long COVID (navigating uncertainty, keeping up with rapidly emerging evidence, trial and error, adapting mindset and rehabilitative approaches and growing prominence of roles as advocate and collaborator). Participants recommended the need for education and training, active and open-minded listening with patients, interdisciplinary models of care, and organisational- and system-level improvements to foster access to care.

Conclusions: Physiotherapists' experiences involved a disruption to the profession followed by a dynamic process of learning curves and evolving roles in Long COVID rehabilitation. Not all participants demonstrated an in-depth understanding of existing Long COVID rehabilitation guidelines. Results may help inform physiotherapy education in Long COVID rehabilitation.

Keywords: Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome; QUALITATIVE RESEARCH; REHABILITATION MEDICINE.