Knowledge and Beliefs Regarding Physiotherapy among General Population: An Exploratory Cross-Sectional Survey

Abstract

Physiotherapy is an established health-care profession that assists individuals in maintaining, improving, and restoring body functions to live a disability-free life. Lack of education and awareness among the general population may affect the use of physiotherapy care. At large, awareness and beliefs affect the autonomy, growth, and utilization of physiotherapy services. Therefore, a cross-sectional survey of the general population was conducted to investigate knowledge and beliefs. The survey yielded a total of 138 responses. The survey consisted of three sections: introduction, essential information, and questions related to knowledge and beliefs about physiotherapy (PT) practice. The majority of the respondents were aware of physiotherapy (87%). A low level of awareness was found about consulting a physiotherapist as the first contact practitioner; 69% (n = 95) of respondents said they needed a referral for physiotherapy services. Most study participants, 87% (n = 120), lacked awareness of various specialties in physiotherapy. Some prevailing beliefs were identified within the population, with 88% (n = 122) holding the notion that “physiotherapy is always painful.” In addition, most respondents expressed that physiotherapy services are crucial for patients in the intensive care unit. Although the study participants were aware of the term physiotherapy, many other domains related to physiotherapy need to be highlighted, and the public needs to be informed about the scope of physiotherapy practice and its role in the health-care system.