BACKGROUND

Educational standards of advanced musculoskeletal physiotherapy include mentored clinical practice. Whilst traditionally delivered face-to-face, telehealth e-mentoring affords a distinctive andragogy to facilitate mentee development.

OBJECTIVE

To understand the experiences and outcomes of stakeholders participating in musculoskeletal physiotherapy telehealth e-mentoring.

DESIGN

A case study design with sequential mixed methods (quantitative patient outcome data and qualitative interviews and a focus group) of a 20-week e-mentored telehealth physiotherapy service.

METHODS

Data collection comprised 1) Patient experiences and measures of musculoskeletal health 2) Mentee semi-structured interviews 3) Mentor focus group. Data analysis included descriptive statistics (median and IQR) and the Framework Method for qualitative and quantitative data respectively. An exploratory bidirectional approach supported data integration across all participants.

RESULTS

Participants included patients (n = 90), mentees (n = 10) and mentors (n = 6). Patients reported improvements (>MCID) in MSK-HQ and Patient Specific Functional Scale, with high scores for Consultation and Relational Empathy and Patient Enablement Instruments. Main themes were a) social learning b) advanced professional practice c) learner experience and d) limitations of telehealth for mentees, and for mentors a) preparedness b) journey of development and c) challenges. Participant data integration resulted in 4 main themes 1) energising/positive experience 2) communications skills valued 3) perceptions of telehealth 4) upskilling required.

CONCLUSIONS

Telehealth e-mentoring is a valuable alternative to face-to-face mentored physiotherapy practice to support development in advanced musculoskeletal physiotherapy practice. Findings indicate that technical and professional skills are required, high levels of communication skills were valued, there is a need for reconceptualisation of musculoskeletal physiotherapeutic interventions.