Patients and physiotherapy professionals' perspectives on group-based treatments: a systematic review protocol

Abstract

Introduction: Physiotherapy is a recommended treatment for a wide range of conditions. However, waitlists can delay access to care, leading to poorer patient outcomes and added strain on healthcare systems. Group-based physiotherapy treatments have shown comparable clinical effectiveness to individual care and may help address these challenges. Despite this potential, their implementation in practice remains limited. Therefore, this systematic review aims to: (1) identify the determinants of use, intention to use, satisfaction, attitudes and experience with group-based treatments of patients and physiotherapy professionals, such as physiotherapists or physiotherapy technologists and (2) assess the factors that may influence patients' and professionals' preferences for group-based treatments over individual treatments.

Methods and analysis: Systematic searches were conducted on 6 September 2024 in the Medline, Embase, Web of Science, EBSCO CINAHL and Cochrane databases to identify studies published in French or English, in line with the language proficiency of the review team. Eligible studies will use quantitative, qualitative or mixed-method designs and report original data on the use or intention to use, satisfaction with, attitudes toward and experiences with group-based physiotherapy treatments, from either patients or physiotherapy professionals. Studies will be screened by two independent reviewers, with any discrepancy resolved through consensus or by involving a third reviewer. Data will be extracted from the included studies by two independent reviewers using a predefined data extraction form, with any discrepancy similarly resolved. For quantitative findings, the direction of the relationship between the outcomes and their determinants will be reported, along with the magnitude and significance of the coefficients, where available. For qualitative findings, relevant quotes will be provided to illustrate the relationship between the outcomes and their determinants. All included studies will be assessed by two independent reviewers using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool, with any discrepancy resolved again through consensus or by involving a third reviewer.

Ethics and dissemination: Ethical approval is not required for this review as it involves the collection of data from existing publications only. The findings will be disseminated through publication in a peer-reviewed scientific journal and presentations at relevant conferences.

Trial registration number: CRD42024574513.

Keywords: Health Services Accessibility; Physical Therapy Modalities; Systematic Review.