Connectivity: an emerging concept for physiotherapy practice

Nicholls, David A., Atkinson, Karen, Bjorbaekmo, Wenche S., Gibson, Barbara E., Latchem, Julie ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6738-916X, Olesen, Jens, Ralls, Jenny and Setchell, Jennifer 2016. Connectivity: an emerging concept for physiotherapy practice. Physiotherapy Theory and Practice 32 (3) , pp. 159-170. 10.3109/09593985.2015.1137665

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Abstract

Having spent their first century anchored to a biomedical model of practice, physiotherapists have been increasingly interested in exploring new models and concepts that will better equip them for serving the health-care needs of 21st century clients/patients. Connectivity offers one such model. With an extensive philosophical background in phenomenology, symbolic interactionism, structuralism, and postmodern research, connectivity resists the prevailing western biomedical view that health professionals should aim to increase people’s independence and autonomy, preferring instead to identify and amplify opportunities for collaboration and co-dependence. Connectivity critiques the normalization that underpins modern health care, arguing that our constant search for deviance is building stigma and discrimination into our everyday practice. It offers provocative opportunities for physiotherapists to rethink some of the fundamental tenets of their profession and better align physiotherapy with 21st century societal expectations. In this paper, we provide a background to the place connectivity may play in future health care, and most especially future physiotherapy practice. The paper examines some of the philosophical antecedents that have made connectivity an increasingly interesting and challenging concept in health care today.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Journalism, Media and Culture
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
ISSN:	0959-3985
Date of Acceptance:	9 July 2015
Last Modified:	08 Nov 2023 02:28
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/103615

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