Are the physical activity habits of Turkish physiotherapists associated with their physical activity promotion and counseling?

Are the physical activity habits of healthcare professionals associated with their physical activity promotion and counselling?: A systematic review

OBJECTIVE

Healthcare professionals (HCPs) play an important role in conducting brief physical activity counselling during consultations, representing one of the population's most cost-effective interventions for its promotion. Despite this, their clinical practice often falls short in addressing physical activity with the necessary depth and frequency. This study aimed to synthesise the literature concerning the association between the physical activity habits of HCPs and their attitudes toward physical activity promotion and counselling.

METHODS

The systematic review followed PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines. Its protocol was registered in PROSPERO under ID: CRD42023408302. In March 2023, a comprehensive search was conducted using key terms related to physical activity levels and HCPs counselling practices across the Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, SPORTDiscus, APA PsycInfo, and CINAHL databases. Registered HCPs classified under the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) were included. The Newcastle-Ottawa Scale was used for assessing articles quality.

RESULTS

The search yielded 6618 articles, with 51 meeting the inclusion criteria after filtering and cross-referencing. Predominantly cross-sectional studies were included, mainly involving HCPs responding to questionnaires regarding their physical activity habits and promotion and counselling practices. Heterogeneous results were found.

CONCLUSION

High-quality studies mainly concluded that higher physical activity levels among HCPs were associated with more physical activity promotion and counselling practices. These findings are an important contribution to the relevance of the physical activity practice by HCPs and highlighting the importance of promoting its counselling in clinical practice.

Physical Therapists' Knowledge, Skills, Beliefs, and Organizations Impact Physical Activity Promotion: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to characterize factors that influence physical therapists' physical activity (PA) promotion practices and map these factors to the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) to inform future implementation efforts.

METHODS

Six databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, CINAHL, PsychInfo, and Web of Science) were searched from inception to March 11, 2021. Studies were included if they reported physical therapists' PA promotion practices and factors influencing these practices. Study quality was assessed with a modified Newcastle-Ottawa Scale and the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme checklist. Studies were excluded if they did not separate physical therapist PA promotion practices and influencing factors from other health professionals.

RESULTS

The search yielded 12,835 references and 27 included studies. Twenty studies were included in a meta-analysis of proportions, whereas 15 studies were included in a meta-analysis of correlations. Very-low to moderate-quality evidence suggests that factors at the individual and organizational levels have very small to moderate associations with PA promotion practices.

CONCLUSION

Efforts to improve PA promotion by physical therapists should consider incorporating combinations of individual and organizational factors. Limitations to the body of evidence highlight the need for future research.

IMPACT

With PA projected to decrease in the general population by an additional 20% by 2050, PA promotion is urgently needed to maximize physical therapists' impact on the health of society. This study identifies factors that may prove useful for guiding the development of strategies to encourage greater engagement in PA promotion by physical therapists.