Autumn 2021 Physiotherapy in a pandemic

Identifying and treating Long COVID in private practice

Long COVID is the term used to describe the long-term symptoms experienced by those who have had the COVID-19 infection. Private practices across all specialities are in a position to offer individualised care for Long COVID patients, but the unique nature of a post-viral condition means that practitioners need to keep up to date on their knowledge and understanding of the complexities of Long COVID in order to provide safe and effective care to this population of patients

Occupational physiotherapy and the impact of COVID-19 pandemic: a personal perspective

Occupational physiotherapy, often delivered by Physio First members, has an important part to play in supporting organisations managing employee health and wellbeing, never more so than during the COVID-19 pandemic. Faced with lockdown restrictions, homeworking and the emergence of post-COVID-19 syndrome, we have adapted and innovated our clinical practice in ways we could not have imagined. This article is a retrospective look at how Optima Health, the UK’s largest occupational health provider, changed the way it delivered services during the pandemic and the possible implications for the future of occupational physiotherapy.

Cabella Lowe

The pandemic affect on chronic pain: patient perspective

In 2016, I wrote an article for In Touch about scoliosis from a patient perspective. In it, I focused on what I perceived as the lack of information about scoliosis in the medical profession, which led to poor pathways of treatment in general, and woeful conservative treatment in particular, and I suggested what might be needed to change. Having been invited to write for In Touch again, my focus here is on what, if anything, has changed and, from the perspective of someone with persistent pain, how those of us who rely on physiotherapy and pain management services have been affected by, and coped with, the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bernadette Johnson

Managing the consequence of COVID-19 with technology

Individually prescribed and symptom tailored physical activity and exercise may play an important role in the management of the long-term consequences of COVID-19. However, with adherence to home exercise programmes typically as low as 30%, their effectiveness may be under-realised. With an estimated one in two patients needing follow-up while recovering from the acute symptoms of COVID-19, it is likely that traditional models of rehabilitation will need to be scaled up to meet demand. This article provides an overview of how innovative behaviour change approaches, supported by technology, could increase adherence and provide an integrated service delivery model that could scale up service delivery.