Elkhawaga Hosny, Kamel Abdallah M, Badr Mohamed, Gamiel Abdallah, Basheer Ahmed A
Faculty of Physical Therapy, Cairo University, Giza, EGY.
Medical Research Group of Egypt, Negida Academy, Arlington, USA.
Cureus. 2024 Nov 12;16(11):e73507. doi: 10.7759/cureus.73507. eCollection 2024 Nov.
Background The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was an expanding pandemic caused by a new strain of the coronavirus family known as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). No previous studies have examined the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on physical therapy practice in Egypt. Objectives This study aimed to assess the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on physical therapy clinical practice in Egypt five months after the pandemic declaration. The study investigated how Egyptian physical therapists interacted during the pandemic and the effect of the pandemic on precautionary measures. Additionally, this study assessed the knowledge of physical therapists about COVID-19. Methods A cross-sectional study with a convenient sample was conducted in Egypt through an online structured questionnaire. Data were collected between August 28, 2020, and October 10, 2020. Results A total of 409 physical therapists from 23 Egyptian governorates completed the survey. At some point during the COVID-19 pandemic, 249 (60.9%) physical therapists left their work. Only 131 (32%) visited patients' homes. The majority of respondents, 330 (80.7%), reported that they were afraid to catch any infection from patients during assessment and treatment. Moreover, 330 (80.7%) reported feeling anxious about the COVID-19 pandemic, and 220 (53.8%) reported that their mental health and well-being were not okay. The majority of the participants committed to precautionary measures of physical therapists during the COVID-19 pandemic. The mean knowledge score was 18.29±1.99 out of 23. Conclusions The COVID-19 pandemic affected physical therapy clinical practice in Egypt. It had a psychological impact on Egyptian physical therapists. Egyptian physical therapists committed to precautionary measures against COVID-19 and demonstrated a very good knowledge about COVID-19. Physical therapists should be aware of precautionary measures against infectious diseases, which help can prevent the spread of disease if any new pandemic occurs.
背景 2019 冠状病毒病（COVID - 19）是由一种新型冠状病毒引起的不断蔓延的大流行病，这种新型冠状病毒被称为严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒 2（SARS-CoV-2）。此前尚无研究考察 COVID - 19 大流行对埃及物理治疗实践的影响。目的 本研究旨在评估 COVID - 19 大流行宣布五个月后对埃及物理治疗临床实践的影响。该研究调查了埃及物理治疗师在大流行期间的互动方式以及大流行对预防措施的影响。此外，本研究评估了物理治疗师对 COVID - 19 的了解情况。方法 通过在线结构化问卷在埃及进行了一项采用方便抽样的横断面研究。数据收集于 2020 年 8 月 28 日至 2020 年 10 月 10 日期间。结果 来自埃及 23 个省份的 409 名物理治疗师完成了调查。在 COVID - 19 大流行期间的某个时候，249 名（60.9%）物理治疗师离开了工作岗位。只有 131 名（32%）去患者家中出诊。大多数受访者，330 名（80.7%）报告称他们在评估和治疗期间害怕从患者那里感染任何疾病。此外，330 名（80.7%）报告对 COVID - 19 大流行感到焦虑，220 名（53.8%）报告他们的心理健康状况不佳。大多数参与者在 COVID - 19 大流行期间遵守了物理治疗师的预防措施。在 23 分的总分中，平均知识得分是 18.29±1.99。结论 COVID - 19 大流行影响了埃及的物理治疗临床实践。它对埃及物理治疗师产生了心理影响。埃及物理治疗师遵守针对 COVID - 19 的预防措施，并对 COVID - 19 表现出了很好的了解。物理治疗师应了解针对传染病的预防措施，如果发生任何新的大流行，这些措施有助于防止疾病传播。
