Nursing home residents missing out on physiotherapy treatment
Many of the elderly in residential aged care are going without the physiotherapy treatment that they need to allow them to undertake basic activities such as walking and getting dressed, according to a survey by the Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA).
APA president, Mr Peter Fazey said, “The survey showed that the average amount of time allocated for physiotherapy treatment is only 4.45 minutes per resident per week. In the worst case, a mere 24 seconds per resident per week was allocated for physiotherapy treatment.
“It’s hard to imagine how homes are meeting their obligation to ensure optimal levels of mobility and dexterity under Commonwealth standards,” he said.
“A total of 66 per cent of physiotherapists surveyed, believed the elderly under their care did not receive the physiotherapy treatment they require, and that a significant amount of therapy most appropriately undertaken by a registered physiotherapist, was actually being performed by non-physiotherapy staff.
“For a typical resident, being denied access to physiotherapy might mean the difference between being able to walk independently or being bed bound.
“The APA is calling for better scrutiny of access to physiotherapy by the independent Aged Care Standards and Accreditation Agency, the body responsible for managing the accreditation and ongoing supervision of quality in residential aged-care facilities.
“Residents and relatives should also ask facilities to divulge exactly how much time is allocated for a registered physiotherapist to provide clinical treatment to their loved ones”, Mr Fazey said.
