The physiotherapist-patient relationship: applying a psychotherapy model

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
The aim of this article is to elaborate the concept of the physiotherapist-patient relationship, taking counselling and psychotherapeutic encounters as the model. The relationship is described as consisting of three components: the working alliance, the transference configuration, and the real relationship. The model of interactions between the therapist and the patient during physiotherapeutic treatment is developed. According to this, the process and the outcome of a treatment are influenced by two factors: (1) the degree of insight-seeking orientation, and (2) the interplay of the three components of the relationship. The application of the model in physiotherapeutic practice is illustrated by means of three case studies.