Psychometric evaluation of the shortened version of the Functional Difficulties Questionnaire to assess thoracic physical function.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the shortened version of the Functional Difficulties Questionnaire (FDQ).

Design: This is a multisite observational study.

Setting: The study was conducted in four tertiary care hospitals in Australia.

Postgraduate clinical physiotherapy education in acute hospitals: a cohort study.

: Junior physiotherapists require satisfactory clinical skills to work effectively within the acute hospital setting for service quality and consistency. : To investigate the effects of stream-specific clinical training on junior physiotherapist self-efficacy, self-rated confidence, and self-rated ability to work independently during weekend shifts. : Prospective cohort study.

What Factors Do Allied Health Take Into Account When Making Resource Allocation Decisions?

Background: Allied health comprises multiple professional groups including dietetics, medical radiation practitioners, occupational therapists, optometrists and psychologists. Different to medical and nursing, Allied health are often organized in discipline specific departments and allocate budgets within these to provide services to a range of clinical areas. Little is known of how managers of allied health go about allocating these resources, the factors they consider when making these decisions, and the sources of information they rely upon.

How Do Allied Health Professionals Define and Apply Equity When Making Resource Allocation Decisions?

An ethnographic study was conducted in 2 stages to understand how allied health professionals define and apply equity when making resource allocation decisions. Participants were allied health managers and clinicians from Victoria, Australia. Stage 1 included 4 semi-structured forums that incorporated real-life case studies, group discussions, and hypothetical scenarios.

Physiotherapy departments in Australian tertiary hospitals regularly participate in and disseminate research results despite a lack of allocated staff: a prospective cross-sectional survey.

Objectives: To establish the level of research activity in physiotherapy departments of Australian tertiary hospitals.

Design: Prospective cross-sectional survey.

Participants: Physiotherapy managers from 37 principal referral hospitals and specialist women's and children's hospitals as identified from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2011).

What stops hospital clinical staff from following protocols? An analysis of the incidence and factors behind the failure of bedside clinical staff to activate the rapid response system in a multi-campus Australian metropolitan healthcare service.

Objective: To explore the causes of failure to activate the rapid response system (RRS). The organisation has a recognised incidence of staff failing to act when confronted with a deteriorating patient and leading to adverse outcomes.

Design: A multi-method study using the following: a point prevalence survey to determine the incidence of abnormal simple bedside observations and activation of the rapid response team by clinical staff; a prospective audit of all patients experiencing a cardiac arrest, unplanned intensive care unit admission or death over an 8-week period; structured interviews of staff to explore cognitive and sociocultural barriers to activating the RRS.

Why don't hospital staff activate the rapid response system (RRS)? How frequently is it needed and can the process be improved?

Background: The rapid response system (RRS) is a process of accessing help for health professionals when a patient under their care becomes severely ill. Recent studies and meta-analyses show a reduction in cardiac arrests by a one-third in hospitals that have introduced a rapid response team, although the effect on overall hospital mortality is less clear. It has been suggested that the difficulty in establishing the benefit of the RRS has been due to implementation difficulties and a reluctance of clinical staff to call for additional help.