How compliant are physiotherapists affiliated to occupational health services with clinical audit practice - Abstract

Oct 15, 2026

The project assessed how fully physiotherapists working within occupational health services carry out the full clinical audit cycle. A convenience sample was drawn from physiotherapists attending two conference days who provided verbal consent, completing a confidential survey. Most participants undertook clinical audit practice (94%) and audits were commonly performed annually (77%). However, many did not feed audit outcomes into broader quality improvement initiatives (42%). The findings support encouraging linkage of outcomes to complete the full audit cycle.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages8

Reading Time20 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Methods

Findings

How compliant are physiotherapists affiliated to occupational health services with clinical audit practice? LARAN CHETTY 1 Senior Physiotherapist, Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, Occupational Health and Wellbeing Centre, London, UK Abstract: The purpose of this project was to determine the extent to which physiotherapists affiliated to occupational health services undertake the full clinical audit cycle. A sample of convenience was used to select physiotherapists that were in attendance over two conference days. Those who verbally consented to take part were asked to complete a survey and place it in an envelope which was immediately sealed to maintain confidentiality of responses. The majority of physiotherapists undertook clinical audit practice (94%). The common frequency of clinical audits was annually (77%). Most physiotherapists did not contribute their clinical audit outcomes into any quality improvement initiatives (42%). Occupational health services should encourage physiotherapists affiliated to them to identify and link their outcomes into broader quality improvement initiatives so that the full audit cycle can be completed. Keywords: clinical audit, occupational health, physiotherapy, survey, practice Introduction Clinical audit is a quality improvement practice that aims to improve the delivery of healthcare through the systematic review of care against explicit criteria or standards (Lokuarachchi, 2006) . Following completion of the clinical audit changes are implemented at individual and/or service level and further monitoring is used to confirm if the changes lead to improvement in healthcare delivery (Johnston et al., 2000) . 1 *Email: [laranchetty@gmail.com](laranchetty@gmail.com) In 1989, the National Health Service (NHS) in the United Kingdom (UK) introduced a White Paper titled ‘Working for Patients’ to ensure that the delivery of healthcare was reviewed and best practice was being implemented (Waclawski, 2009) . Since the release of the White Paper clinical audit practice has become a requirement for health professionals working in the NHS. In addition, physiotherapists are required by their regulatory body, the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), to undertake this practice as part of continuous professional development (Health and Care Professions Council, 2018) . In the UK, occupational health departments undertake clinical audit practice not just as a medical requirement but as a vital quality improvement initiative (Ujah et al., 2004) . A range of occupational health activities have the potential to undergo clinical audit, namely vocational rehabilitation, back pain, depression and anxiety, needle stick injuries, immunisations, pre-employment health screening, types of referrals and common health conditions, cost-effectiveness, skin dermatitis, and client satisfaction. A literature search revealed that physiotherapists affiliated to occupational health services have undertaken clinical audits on clinical and cost-effectiveness of therapeutic interventions and client satisfaction (Addley et al., 2010; Chetty, 2011, 2014; Smedley et al., 2012) . A full clinical audit cycle involves more than just simply collecting information as a benchmark exercise against a standard. It is a process that involves undertaking repeat audits to confirm the impact of any changes implemented, sharing of outcomes to relevant stakeholders, and having a follow-up process that contributes into quality improvement initiatives (Benjamin, 2008) . The purpose of this project was therefore to determine the extent to which physiotherapists affiliated to occupational health services complete the full clinical audit cycle. Methods An initial online database search was carried out in Google Scholar, Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online (Medline), and the United States National Library of Medicine (PubMed) using the terms: clinical audit, occupational health, physiotherapy. Th

FAQs

What was the main aim of the project?

To determine the extent to which physiotherapists affiliated to occupational health services undertake the full clinical audit cycle.

How were participants recruited and how was confidentiality handled?

Physiotherapists were selected using convenience sampling at a conference, asked for verbal consent, then completed a survey that was sealed immediately to maintain confidentiality.

What did the project find about audit practice and audit follow-through?

Most physiotherapists undertook clinical audit practice (94%), audits were often annual (77%), but many did not contribute audit outcomes into quality improvement initiatives (42%).

Oct 15, 2026

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