Physiotherapy services in the face of a pandemic

BACKGROUND: Physiotherapy services are necessary for hospitalized patients of COVID-19 as well as chronic patients. Thus, physiotherapists present an increased risk of exposure to coronavirus. This study aimed to determine the number of physiotherapists who interrupted their services because of the COVID-19 pandemic and to verify the procedures adopted by the ones who are still working. METHODS: The sample comprised 619 physiotherapists who worked in Portugal, 154 (24.9%) male and 465 (75.1%) female, aged between 22 and 67 years (34.47 8.70). The measurement instrument was an on-line questionnaire applied in late March 2020 through contacts and social networks. RESULTS: 453 (73.2%) physiotherapists interrupted their work activities in person because of the pandemic and 166 (26.8%) continue to work in person. The main measures adopted by physical therapists who continue to work in person included: hand washing (21.5%), mask use (20.3%), material disinfection (19.3%) and, glove use (19.3%). Of the physiotherapists who are not working in person (n = 453), 267 (58.9%) continue to monitor their patients at a distance, and 186 (41.1%) are not monitoring the patients. The main measures used by physiotherapists to monitor their patients at a distance included: written treatment prescription (38%), making explanatory videos (26.7%), and synchronous video conference treatment (23.5%). CONCLUSIONS: Our data revealed that most of the physiotherapists interrupted their face-to-face practices because of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, once they do not follow up their patients' treatment in person, most of them adapted to monitor their patients from a distance.