Research Barriers & facilitators of Physical Therapists of Pakistan

Objective: To determine the research barriers & facilitators among physical therapist in Pakistan. Methodology: A cross sectional survey was conducted from June 2014 to June 2015. A self designed questionnaire was circulated to Physical therapist with list of barriers. Out of 500, only 234 filled questionnaires were returned (response rate was 47%). The likert scale with 1-5 score was used to assess the perception. Results: The 234 Physical therapists were included; 71% male and 29% females. The ranking of barriers to research showed that "Lack of Training in curriculum" got the highest mean score 4.05, "Lack of Supervision 3.88, "Lack of time" 3.76, "Lack of Finance 3.58 and "Lack of free access to literature" 3.41. The main research facilitator was the "level of Motivation" with mean score of 2.47. Conclusion: The lack of training and supervision are the major barriers along with time and financial constraint. It is essential to enhance the research activity to promote evidence based practice.