‘Leaving my comfort zone’. A qualitative study of physiotherapists’ experiences blending an eHealth psychosocial intervention with face-to-face physiotherapy

Background Many physiotherapists do not feel adequately equipped to address psychosocial risk factors in people with complex pain states. Hence, a biopsychosocial blended intervention (Back2Action) was developed to assist physiotherapists to manage people with persistent spinal pain and coexisting psychosocial risk factors associated with the development or maintenance of persistent pain. Objective This study aimed to gain insight into the experiences of physiotherapists with this blended psychosocial intervention. Design and methods: This was an interpretative qualitative study with a reflexive thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with physiotherapists (N=15) who delivered Back2Action. The interview started with the grand-tour question: “What was your experience in using Back2Action?” Physiotherapist were encouraged to provide examples, and follow-up questions were posed to ensure a deeper understanding could be reached. Results Four themes were constructed: Physiotherapists became increasingly aware of (1) their own implicit expectations, biases and skills, and underlying treatment paradigms, and (2) the implicit expectations from their patients towards them. This led to (3) creating a deeper and stronger therapeutic alliance with the patient, but also (4) an understanding that implementation of a true biopsychosocial intervention – even if offered in a blended form – requires more practice, confidence and resources. Conclusions Back2Action is considered a valuable treatment to deliver a biopsychosocial intervention in primary care. Considering the high level of knowledge, skills and competency of the participating physiotherapists, the perceived barriers may be more difficult to overcome for more junior physiotherapists.