Caring in and for physiotherapy through stewardship

ABSTRACT

Care is central to many health professions, including physiotherapy. Different forms of care are enacted as part of being a caring professional. For example, a practitioner who provides good service to others and upholds standards while doing so is in-grained in education for professional formation. However, there are other topics and aspects of care that are not as well attended to, and that is care for the future of the profession. This too is an aspect of care, and it is an urgent objective in an era where societies and healthcare are changing at rapid rates. In this paper, I argue that Golde and Walker’s (2006) idea of stewardship can help health professionals think about this often overlooked aspect of care. Stewardship adds a perspective that is centered on a deep authentic care for and responsibility towards the ongoing relevance of the profession. Stewardship keeps the question of what the profession is, and what a professional does, alive as part of its present and future practice.

KEYWORDS:

• Stewardship
• care
• health professions
• physiotherapy
• way of thinking and practicing

Acknowledgments

To Tai Peseta and Simon Barrie, whose encouragement made this work possible.

Declaration of Interest

The author declares no conflict of interest.