Aim: This study aimed to: describe Filipino PTs' knowledge of WHO physical activity (PA) guidelines and their use of behavioral change techniques (BCTs) and theories when promoting PA in older ...adults, and (2) explore factors that potentially influence their engagement in PA promotion. Methods: Filipino PTs who handled older adult clients from March to April 2020 answered an online orprinted survey. Recruitment was done through various practice sites and the PPTA. Descriptive statistics summarized responses and correlational analysis explored whether key determinants and relevant demographic characteristics were linked to PA promotion in older adult clients. Results: There were 72 respondents. Data collection was concluded early following the COVID pandemic restrictions and major changes in the PT practice landscape in the Philippines. More than half were unaware (59.15%), and most could not recall the WHO guidelines (98.61%) correctly. Respondents used a limited range of BCTs when promoting PA. While some were aware of at least one behavior change theory (66.66%), a number were unfamiliar with these (33.33%), with only a small proportion reporting regular use in practice. Eleven out of 18 domains of determinants of PA promotion as well as the age and years of practice of the respondents were found to have a statistically significant positive relationship with PA promotion. Conclusion and Implications: Study results can serve as the basis for programs that improve knowledge of Filipino PTs with regards to WHO PA guidelines and strengthen their use of a wider range of BCTs and theories to guide PA promotion in older adult clients. This can potentially place Filipino PTs at the forefront of addressing this public health concern in the aging Filipino population.
Introduction: Studies have already investigated the practice of physical therapists (PTs) in promoting non-treatment physical activity (NTPA). However, these were done in the context of mostly ...western settings or were not specific to older adult practice. It is still unclear if a similar level of practice and perspectives on NTPA promotion exists in a setting where physical therapy is more associated with rehabilitation than health promotion, such as in the Philippines. Therefore, this study aimed to describe Filipino PTs' knowledge of WHO physical activity (PA) guidelines and their use of behavioral change techniques (BCTs) and theories when promoting PA in older adults. It also explored factors that potentially influenced their engagement in PA promotion. Methods: Filipino PTs who were handling or interested in handling older adult clients from March to April 2020 answered an online/printed survey. Results: More than half of 72 respondents were unaware (59.72%) and most were unable to recall the WHO guidelines (98.61%) correctly. Respondents used a limited range of BCTs when promoting PA. While some (66.66%) were aware of at least one behavior change theory, a number were unfamiliar with all (33.33%) and only a small proportion reported regular use in practice. A number of factors and respondent characteristics were found to have a statistically significant positive relationship with PA promotion. Discussion: Study results can serve as preliminary basis for programs that improve promotion of NTPA on older-adult clients by Filipino PTs, specifically regarding knowledge on WHO PA guidelines and their use of a wide range of BCTs and theories. This can potentially place them at the forefront of addressing this health concern in the aging population.
