Cratch 1 Danielle Cratch Ms. Melissa Mohlere English 112-42 2 October 2013 Physiotherapists: Threatened by other disciplines?

Physiotherapists play a life-size role in rehabilitating patients in hospitals and intensive care units. If physiotherapists are being threatened by nurses and such disciplines, how are they going to keep their jobs in hospitals mobilizing patients? If physiotherapists do not take a stand soon, they will not be recognized for their importance and will soon lose their jobs. Alice Jones PhD is a specialist in Cardiopulmonary Physiotherapy. She is a professor and program leader of the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. I believe Alice Jones is a credible author because she has a Doctorate in Physiotherapy. She believes to know what she is talking about and has very good information to back up her thoughts. Her thesis states, Is physiotherapy losing recognition or are competing disciplines gaining market share, or both? Jones begins her essay by talking about how physiotherapy is an immense part of the healthcare system. Physiotherapy is an integral part of a health service delivery system, distributed in a variety of settings ranging from intensive care units to community healthcare centres (Jones 1). Jones also says that physiotherapists play a huge role in patients respiratory care. She has made it quite clear what a physiotherapist does and what a big part they are of the healthcare system and in patients lives.

Cratch 2 The problem she identifies is that the physiotherapy profession is losing recognition by healthcare and other disciplines, or competition. Jones makes it very clear that physiotherapists are losing recognition. She says, Tragically, more than half the intensive care unit directors surveyed considered that the physiotherapists work could be performed by other disciplines, despite rating their physiotherapy service as outstanding or very good. There must be something that we as the readers can do to prove that physiotherapists are just as important as other authorities. She provides good information that fits into the article very well. Jones assumes her readers are unaware of the role a physiotherapist plays and how they help patients. The scope of service includes health promotion, impairment prevention, disability restoration and interventions which maintain body system integrity, says she. Before I read this editorial, I had no clue what a physiotherapist was. She explained very well the roles of these therapists and what makes them unique. After I read this article, I understood what a physiotherapist really is and how they help patients. Her purpose in this essay is to let the audience know what they can do to get physiotherapists re-recognized for their importance to healthcare. To me, healthcare is important. We need to recognize all the people that help patients in regaining their abilities again. She provides a great approach to regaining recognition. Rather than just defending and justifying our existence, we need to take a more active approach to extending our role and competing in the market place, says Jones. In order to accomplish this purpose, she appeals mainly to the humility of physiotherapists. Physiotherapists are very compassionate about their career and want patients to feel the best they can. Alice Jones says, In my view, humility is the bedrock of care

Cratch 3 underpinning the physiotherapy profession, but it is an inappropriate virtue for commercial competition. She is saying that physiotherapists should continue their education in order for them to be noticed by the other professions. She words this very well in my opinion. She also appeals to what studying physiotherapists should be taught in school. In my opinion, Jones gives great examples of exactly what can be done in school to improve the profession. Management of patients in the intensive care unit can be considered a three-stage care continuum In support of this, the undergraduate curriculum should not only prepare our graduates academically to extend their role but give them the political skills and confidence to lead these components of patient care beyond the health community (Jones 3). I agree with these statements because we can always improve our knowledge of what we want to make of our career. In her essay, Jones addresses the main argument against her thesis, the idea that other disciplines, or nurses, can apply the same techniques as the physiotherapists can to their patients. Jones suggests that almost all ICU directors from various countries consider the major role of a physiotherapist to be secretion mobilization, meanwhile only half of the directors considered more ventilation and maintaining exercise important to ICU physiotherapy care. It suggests disparity of role between other disciplines and physiotherapists in the ICU, states Jones. She provides good informative facts about the intensive care unit disciplines and how only half are being acknowledged for their support and effectiveness in helping patients mobilize, breathe correctly, etc. again. She refutes this argument by saying that physiotherapists are special in that they deliver better quality of care for patients than other authorities can and no one should take all the credit.

Cratch 4 In the context of healthcare, in particular in health promotion, no one discipline should claim total ownership (Jones 2). Alice Jones states that if its obvious that physiotherapists give the best quality of care, the threat from basic therapists shouldnt be that big of a concern for other physiotherapists. She compares the threat to a paper tiger, meaning not a big deal. Alice Jones sticks to her argument in that physiotherapy is an exceptional profession that delivers such quality other authorities cant simply provide to patients. Finally, she concludes by making the point that anything and everything can be done to make physiotherapists noticed and recognized for their importance to patients, in the ICU, and the healthcare system. Us as the readers can do anything to help these physiotherapists seem important in hospitals again. Credentials and specialization processes must be put in place to recognize and advertise our unique capabilities and experience in the healthcare apparatus (Jones 3). Alice Jones also says, The physiotherapy profession must position itself where its voice can be heard. I believe this is very well written because Jones works in the physiotherapy profession and knows exactly what is going on. Overall, the argument Jones makes is effective because she explains how important a physiotherapist is and why they should be recognized. Alice Jones makes very important stands as to why physiotherapy is important to patients around the world. In an acute care setting, the physiotherapist plays a major role in respiratory care of the patient (Jones 1). Jones explains that in developed countries, physiotherapists appreciate the exposure of their profession to decision makers. I would definitely give Alice thumbs up for her argument and would support physiotherapists as they fight the battle to win their recognition back.

Cratch 5 Works Cited Jones, Alice, PhD. "Is the Physiotherapy Profession under Threat?" Wiley InterScience. 11.1(2006):1-3. Ebsco Host. Web. 18 Sept. 2013.