Nigerian physiotherapists’ perceptions of their profession’s prestige and implications

AbstractThis study investigated Nigerian physiotherapists’ perceived prestige of their profession relative to 11 selected occupations and how their perception was influenced by selected sociodemographics. A total of 368 copies of a questionnaire adapted from a previous study were sent to registered physiotherapists working in Nigeria as of May 2007. Data were analysed using Chi-square, Kendall’s W, and multidimensional scaling analysis. Two hundred sixty copies of the questionnaire were completed and returned (70.7% response rate). Respondents included 161 men (62%) and 99 women (38%). Most of them (78.5%) were aged between 20 years and 39 years and were bachelor degree holders (67.2%). Physiotherapy was ranked second on level of education, third on usefulness to the society, fifth on level of responsibility, sixth on social standing, and seventh on income. Physiotherapy was rated fifth overall. The only sociodemographic variable that significantly influenced overall perceived occupational prestige of physiotherapy was type of workplace. Physiotherapists in Nigeria perceived their profession as having moderate occupational prestige, placing it in the fifth position below accountant, lawyer, doctor, and engineer. Physiotherapists in Nigeria need to work hard on improving the prestige standing of their profession

Validity and reliability of a Nigerian-Yoruba version of the stroke-specific quality of life scale 2.0

Abstract Background Psychometric evidence is necessary to establish scientific integrity and clinical usefulness of translations and cultural adaptations of the Stroke-Specific Quality of Life (SS-QoL) scale. However, the limited evidence on psychometrics of Yoruba version of SS-QoL 2.0 (SS-QoL(Y)) is a significant shortcoming. This study assessed the test-retest reliability, internal consistency, convergent, divergent, discriminant and known-group validity of the SS-QoL(Y). Methods Yoruba version of the WHOQoL-BREF was used to test the convergent and divergent validity of the SS-QoL(Y) among 100 consenting stroke survivors. The WHOQoL-BREF and SS-QoL(Y) was administered randomly in order to eliminate bias. The test-retest reliability of the SS-QoL(Y) was carried out among 68 of the respondents within an interval of 7 days. All respondents were purposively recruited from selected secondary and tertiary health facilities in South-west Nigeria. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics of mean and standard deviation, and inferential statistics of Spearman correlation, Cronbach’s alpha, Intra-class Correlation Coefficient (ICC), Independent t-test and One-way ANOVA. Alpha level was set at p < 0.05. Result The physical health, psychological health, social relationship and environment domains on WHOQoL-BREF with correlation coefficient that ranged from 0.214 to 0.360 showed significant correlation with similar domains on SS-QoL(Y). Dissimilar domains between the two scales had r values from 0.035 to 0.366. Discriminant validity of SS-QoL(Y) showed that items’ r value ranged from 0.711 to 0.920 with their hypothesized domains. The scale demonstrated moderate to strong test-retest reliability with Intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) for the domains and overall scores (r = 0.47 to 0.81) and moderate to high internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha =0.61 to 0.82) for domains scores. These correlations were also significant for the domains and overall scores (p < 0.05). There were no significant differences across different age groups or gender for the domains or overall scores of SS-QoL(Y). Conclusions Discriminant and known-group validity, test-retest reliability and internal consistency of the Yoruba version of the Stroke Specific Quality of Life 2.0 are adequate while the convergent and divergent validity are low but acceptable. The SS-QoL(Y) is recommended for assessing health-related quality of life among Yoruba stroke survivors

Prevalence and Pattern of Symptomatic Knee Osteoarthritis in Nigeria: A Community-Based Study

Purpose: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a leading cause of disability, affecting 60-70% of people aged ≥60 years. Community-based prevalence estimates of OA in Nigeria are not readily available for referencing. This study investigated the prevalence and pattern of knee OA in Igbo-Ora, a rural community in Southwestern Nigeria. Methods: A total of 1044 adults (487 males, 557 females) aged ≥ 40 years in Igbo-Ora were recruited into this door-to-door survey through multi-stage cluster sampling. Knee OA was diagnosed using the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) clinical criteria. Knee OA severity was assessed using the Lequesne Algofunctional Index and interference with role performance was rated by participants who met the ACR criteria. Plain radiographs of a multiphase sample of 15 participants with Knee OA were taken. Data was analysed using percentages and Chi square. Results: Two hundred and five (119 females, 86 males) out of the 1044 participants fulfilled the ACR criteria, giving a point prevalence of symptomatic knee OA of 19.6%. The prevalence of knee OA was 21.4% among the females and 17.5% among the males, giving a female bias in the ratio of 1.2:1. Prevalence increased and was significantly associated (P\u3c 0.001) with age. Most participants (98.5%) had moderate-extremely severe disease and knee OA interfered with role performance in 90.2% of participants. All radiographs showed signs consistent with OA. Conclusion: One out of every five adults aged ≥40 years in this Nigerian rural community has symptomatic knee OA, with a female preponderance in the ratio of 1.2:1

Cross-cultural adaptation and validation of the IGBO language version of the stroke-specific quality of life scale 2.0

Introduction: availability of the Stroke-Specific Quality of Life scale 2.0 (SS-QoL(E)) in Yoruba and Hausa, two of the three major indigenous languages in Nigeria have the potential to promote its uptake among these population, however, its non-availability in the Igbo languages makes its use restrictive among the south-eastern Nigerians. This study was aimed at cross-culturally adapting and assessing validity and reliability of the Igbo version of the SS-QoL. Methods: the SS-QoL(E) was cross-culturally adapted to Igbo following the American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons’ guideline. This involved forward and back-translations, expert committee review, pretesting and cognitive debriefing interview to produce the final Igbo version, SS-QoL(I). The validity and reliability test involved 50 consenting Igbo stroke survivors. The construct validity was assessed by administering SS-QoL(E) and SS-QoL(I) on all 50 respondents, while SS-QoL(I) was re-administered at 7-day interval to assess test-retest reliability. Each scale was administered in random order. Data were analysed using Spearman’s correlation, Wilcoxon’s signed-rank test, Cronbach’s alpha, Intra-class Correlation Coefficient (ICC), independent t-test and one-way ANOVA at p<0.05. Results: respondents’ domains scores on SS-QoL(E) and SS-QoL(I) did not differ significantly except in mobility and work (r=0.58 to 0.87; p=0.001). Cronbach’s alpha was 0.69 to 0.87 for domains scores. The ICC ranged from 0.48 to 0.84, while no significant differences was found across different age groups or gender for the domains or overall scores of SS-QoL(I). Conclusion: the Igbo version of the SS-QoL has limited alterations from the original version and has moderate to excellent validity and reliability values