An evaluation of the effectiveness of itinerant and community physiotherapy schemes in meeting the primary health care needs in Oyo State, Nigeria

Abstract

The relative effectiveness of itinerant and community physiotherapy services as primary health care (PHC) schemes was assessed with regard to the attention given to promotive, preventive, curative and rehabilitative needs (which are the components of PHC) of the rural dwellers of Oyo State, Nigeria. The availability and accessibility of the schemes were also evaluated. It was found that the two schemes were effective in taking physiotherapy services to the rural communities. The community physiotherapy service was found to be apparently more effective both in meeting the health care needs of the rural populace and in terms of total number of patients that benefited. However, the difference in the treatment times of each scheme was not statistically significant (p>0.05) though the difference in the number of patients that benefited from the schemes was (p<0.05).