Exploring clinical reasoning in Austrian mental health physiotherapy: the physiotherapist´s perspective

ABSTRACT

Introduction

In mental health physiotherapy, there is a lack of research investigating the assumptions and clinical reasoning strategies of the professionals. A critical view on what is taken for granted within physiotherapy promotes professional development.

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the essence of clinical reasoning of Austrian mental health physiotherapists, and to illuminate the meaning of their experiences.

Method

Ten semi-structured individual interviews were conducted with Austrian mental health physiotherapists. The transcripts were analyzed using a phenomenological hermeneutical method.

Results

The informants’ clinical reasoning emerged as a process of three perspectives: 1) a relational and interactional perspective; 2) a perspective of wholeness; and 3) a perspective of symptoms. The results were then further interpreted using the theories of intercorporeality and bodily resonance.

Conclusion

To bring the different clinical reasoning perspectives together to one clinical reasoning process, a discourse of reconciliation is suggested as a favorable strategy, which may be useful both in clinical practice and education.

KEYWORDS:

• Mental health physiotherapy
• clinical reasoning
• phenomenological hermeneutics
• embodiment
• philosophy of science

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the ten mental health physiotherapists for their great openness to share their lived experiences.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.