Case Report

An Audit of the Physiotherapy Services at the Johannesburg Hospital

S. de Charmoy, C. J. Eales
South African Journal of Physiotherapy | Vol 56, No 1 | a547 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/sajp.v56i1.547 | © 2018 S. de Charmoy, C. J. Eales | This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 11 September 2018 | Published: 28 February 2000

About the author(s)

S. de Charmoy, Physiotherapy Department, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
C. J. Eales, Physiotherapy Department, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

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Abstract

In 1998 the Gauteng Department of Health notified the Physiotherapy Department of the Johannesburg hospital that the number of physiotherapy posts would be cut from 43 full-time posts to 22 full-time posts. This cut in workforce made it essential to re-evaluate the services rendered in order to meet the needs of the hospital. An audit of the number of inpatients on a given day was conducted in June 1998. In addition to this the number of patients requiring physiotherapy and the time needed to treat them was determined. A second study established the time spent by physiotherapists in direct patient care, indirect patient care and “social” activities. From the results of this audit it was established that 22 full-time physiotherapists would not be able to provide a comprehensive physiotherapy service. Since the completion of this audit the number of physiotherapists at the Johannesburg hospital has decreased further with no re-appointments due to cuts in the Gauteng health budget. It is the opinion of the authors that many hospitals in South Africa are in similar positions and that more studies need to be done at hospitals to determine the need for physiotherapy in other hospitals.


Keywords

audit; Gauteng health department; physiotherapy services

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