Physiotherapy

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Browsing Physiotherapy by Subject "Amputees -- Eastern Cape (South Africa)"

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    Determining what rehabilitation information people obtained during major lower extremity amputation (rehabilitation) in the Nelson Mandela Bay Health District setting
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2022-04) Erasmus, Annemie; Statham, S. B.; Giljam-Enright, M.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Dept. of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences. Physiotherapy.
    ENGLISH SUMMARY: Background: Undergoing major lower extremity amputation is mostly an overwhelming and life-altering experience. A person with an amputation has to accept losing a body part and adapting to a life of being reliant on family and/or their social environment for support. Patients have expressed the need for more information on what to expect in the coming weeks as the most important part of rehabilitation is to enhance their coping skills and better planning for the future. Little is known about this type of information, and where people with a lower extremity amputation find the information in lower income countries, specifically, in South Africa. Objectives: To determine if people living with a major lower extremity amputation or their next of kin (carer) acquired rehabilitation-related information in the Nelson Mandela Bay Health area and, if so, to determine what information was obtained and what information would have been helpful. Research method: A qualitative approach and an explorative descriptive design was used. Semi-structured individual qualitative interviews were held with 12 participants residing in the Nelson Mandela Bay Health District who had had a major lower limb amputation and were three to 18 months post-surgery. Demographic data was obtained using a questionnaire, recorded and analysed in MS Excel (version 2007). The interviews were voice recorded, transcribed and analysed using qualitative data-analysis software according to a deductive framework of the ICF core set. Results: The mean age of the study participants was 59 years, and eight participants were male and four were females. The main cause for amputation was a diabetes mellitus complication (58%), followed by motor vehicle accident (25%) and infection (17%). Most of the information that participants received before the amputation pertained to the body structure and function as well as the reason for amputation. Preventative care and education were not topics that were regularly discussed, sometimes only after amputation was the only alternative. After amputation, most participants expressed a strong need for information on various physical activities and life participation domains as well as their daily environmental needs. They expressed the need to be better informed regarding participating in their life roles, moving and mobility within their home context and community, self-care activities and how to continue with life after an amputation. Conclusion: According to the information that these participants received, it was evident that the health care system in the Nelson Mandela Bay Health District still focused on the medical model of information as most of the information that the participants received after the amputation pertained to their body structure and function. The findings of this study supported the need for amputee rehabilitation to focus on physical activity and participation domains as well as environmental factors as set out in the ICF core sets of persons with lower extremity amputation to improve their reintegration into life roles and their community.