Back in focus physiotherapy9/4/2023 outside of hospitals) or privately delivered physiotherapy and chiropractor services may be limited to those who have additional health insurance or are able to pay, with investigation and treatment for people with CBD who cannot afford these services falling, often inappropriately, to publicly-funded medical care. Unfortunately, access to community-based (i.e. Furthermore, adding clinical services that physiotherapists and chiropractors are trained to offer (such as exercise prescription and manual therapy) to usual general medical practitioner care for low back disorders are more cost-effective than usual medical care alone. Conversely, physiotherapists have been shown to have high levels of competency in the assessment, diagnosis, and management of low back disorders and are extensively trained in non-pharmacological pain management approaches. Īlthough family physicians are typically the first clinical contact for people with low back disorders, they may not be the most appropriate health care provider to assess and treat these conditions. Limited access to appropriate primary care is thought to be a contributing factor to this “medical disaster”. Back disorders are costly to individuals and strain health care resources due to high rates of primary physician care visits, specialist consultations, diagnostic procedures, and prescribed medications such as opioids. In Canada, 22% of adults report having back problems lasting 6 months or more and health care expenditures are estimated between $6 and $12 billion annually. Compared to 289 other diseases and conditions, low back pain is the leading cause of morbidity worldwide when considering years lived with disability. This research highlights potential inequities in access to physiotherapists and chiropractors in relation to family physicians among adult Canadians with CBD, particularly among lower socioeconomic status and rural/remote populations.Ĭhronic back disorders (CBD) are a prevalent and costly public health issue however, little is known about the patterns of community-based health care use among Canadians with these common and potentially disabling conditions. After adjustment, differential patterns of utilization ( p < 0.05) were evident between provider groups with respect to age, gender, socioeconomic status, rural/urban residence, functional limitations, and presence of co-morbidities. Few respondents sought care only with a chiropractor (2.5%) or physiotherapist (1.0%). The majority of adult respondents with CBD sought care only with a family physician (53.8%), with 20.9% and 16.2% seeking care with combined family physician/chiropractor or family physician/physiotherapist, respectively. Following descriptive analyses, we used multiple logistic regression to profile self-reported health care use while statistically controlling for possible confounding effects. ![]() This complex survey employs population weights and bootstrapping to be representative of the Canadian population. ![]() The combined 20 Canadian Community Health Surveys conducted by Statistics Canada were used to investigate self-reported health care use among adults with CBD. The research objectives were to investigate patterns of health care use and to profile factors associated with self-reported use of family physicians, chiropractors, and physiotherapists among adult Canadians with CBD. Elucidating these differences may identify potential gaps in access to care and inform the development of strategies to improve access. Chronic back disorders (CBD) are prevalent, costly, and among the most common reasons for seeking primary care however, little is known regarding the comparative use of family physician, chiropractic, and physiotherapy services among people with CBD in Canada.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply.AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |