Development of an evidence-based physiotherapy treatment protocol for acute non-specific neck pain in Ethiopia
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Date
2022
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Western Cape
Abstract
Although neck pain is increasingly being considered as an important public health problem in
Ethiopia, there is no treatment protocol guiding physiotherapy practice for acute non-specific
neck pain (NSNP) in this setting. This means that every physiotherapist treats patients based on
their own knowledge of what constitutes best practice. The problem of clinical inconsistency is
further compounded by the fact that the field of physiotherapy is still in its nascent stages in
Ethiopia, where a recently expanded physiotherapy curriculum is yet to be fully implemented. In
recognition of the fact that evidence-based treatment is now considered clinical best practice by
physiotherapists worldwide, this thesis is premised on the idea that it is necessary to have an
evidence-based treatment protocol that can guide physiotherapists’ decisions when treating these
patients. Moreover, a new and young curriculum offers the option of including new and
evidence-based physiotherapy.
Description
Philosophiae Doctor - PhD
Keywords
Physiotherapy, Public health, Ethiopia, Patients, Physiotherapists