The purpose of this study was to ascertain the attitudes of Irish physiotherapists towards people experiencing homelessness and to explore whether differences existed across job location, title, cohort exposure and groups that have completed relevant training.
Using snowball sampling, an anonymous survey was distributed to physiotherapists working in the Republic of Ireland via Twitter. The survey was created using QualtricsXM. Responses were recorded anonymously with Internet protocol address tracking disabled.
The survey contained the Health Professionals Attitudes Towards the Homeless Inventory (HPATHI) and collected participant demographic data. The HPATHI is a validated and reliable self-administered measure of health professionals’ unconscious biases and ability to treat those experiencing homelessness. Minor adjustments to the language of the HPATHI were made to improve accessibility and appropriateness for physiotherapists within the Irish healthcare system.
The survey received 203 valid responses. Most participants were female (n=168, 82.8%), working full time (n=167, 82.3%) and in an urban (n=125, 61.6%) or suburban setting (n=53, 26.1%). Over three quarters reported greater than 80% face-to-face patient contact in their roles(n=155, 76.4%). Just over half (52.5%, n=110) of physiotherapists surveyed encountered a person experiencing homelessness as part of their work.
Attitudes towards a patient group such as those experiencing homelessness can influence patient care in ways, which can be difficult to quantify. Attitudes of this physiotherapy population towards people who are homeless were positive and compared favourably to other healthcare professionals.
Physiotherapists without training in this area, those who lack exposure to people who are homeless and more junior physiotherapists displayed less favorable attitudes to this group.
Exposure to people experiencing homelessness and relevant training may present as practical methods of improving attitudes and confidence when treating this cohort.
There can be a sense of trepidation when treating people experiencing homelessness, due to their perceived complexity. Exposure to people experiencing homelessness and relevant training should be considered by physiotherapy managers and service providers to optimize attitudes of physiotherapists towards people who are homeless. Education around this area should be included in physiotherapy curricula, with physiotherapy students ideally exposed to this area as part of their clinical training.
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