Janet McLennan Lundie
Purpose: To identify the post hip fracture interventions that Home Health physiotherapists agree are transferable to rehab assistants to optimize support for home-based recovery of mobility.
Methods: Twelve Home Health physiotherapists and two rehabilitation assistants participated in a three-round Delphi consensus exercise using online questionnaires. Descriptive statistics and a predetermined consensus level of 80% were used to judge achievement of agreement.
Findings: Twenty one physiotherapy interventions were agreed upon and prioritized including assessment of safety at home, review of orders/precautions, exercise, and ambulation. Eleven of these interventions were within scope of practice for rehab assistants. Factors that influenced decisions to transfer care, including advantages and barriers, related to quality and quantity of care provided, challenges with supervision, and increased physiotherapy workload.
Conclusion: The consensus determined when transferring care to rehab assistants supported recovery. With validation, the findings will support clinical decision-making and inform development of practice guidelines.