Survey of the Organizational Structure of the Physical Therapy Service in VHA

Veterans Admin Palo Alto Health Care Sys, Palo Alto CA

Investigators

Abstract

6. Project Summary/Abstract This is a pilot study to develop and test a survey of Physical Therapy Supervisors to determine key operational and organizational characteristics hypothesized to influence outcomes. The concept, similar to that of the annual surveys of the Chiefs of Staff and Directors of Primary Care, is to establish a baseline to inform the development of quality improvement initiatives and the further analysis of specific interventions and organizational models of care within and in collaboration with physical therapy. We will convene a group of experts to develop the survey, including VA Physical Therapy Planning Specialists, VA Physical Therapy researchers and experts in survey design and organizational behavior. We will pilot test the survey with a select number of VAMC Physical Therapy Supervisors. Qualitative feedback will be obtained via a focus group. The instrument will be finalized based on the pilot test and focus group. Once the survey is finalized, we will propose a new Investigator Initiated Research project to survey all VHA Physical Therapy Supervisors. Results from the broad survey will provide the framework to further explore the effectiveness and comparative effectiveness of physical therapist treatment of veterans and a baseline to inform quality improvement initiatives.