Community service rehabilitation therapists’ understanding of social accountability

• Published in: African journal of primary health care & family medicine 2024-06, Vol.16 (1), p.e1-9
• Main Authors: Msomi, Ntandoyenkosi L., Ross, Andrew J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Access to information; Accountability; Adult; Attitude of Health Personnel; Biology; Care and treatment; Community Health Services; Community service; Community-based rehabilitation; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Disability; Education; Female; Females; Focus Groups; Health care industry; Health care policy; Health Care Sciences & Services; Healthcare; Hospitals; Humans; International economic relations; Interviews as Topic; Male; Medical personnel; Medicine, General & Internal; Middle Aged; Occupational therapy; Original Research; Patients; People with disabilities; Physical Therapists - psychology; Physical therapy; Professionals; Professions; Public health; Public sector; Qualitative Research; Rehabilitation; Rehabilitation - methods; Rehabilitation therapists; Rural areas; Social accountability; Social aspects; Social Responsibility; South Africa; Speech therapists; Therapists; Training; Understanding; Urban areas
• ISSN: 2071-2928; 2071-2936; 2071-2936
• DOI: 10.4102/phcfm.v16i1.4473

\r\nBackground\r\nSocial accountability is the obligation of health care providers to address the priority health concerns of the community they serve and of universities to ensure that graduates understand these social responsibilities. Although social accountability can combat systemic health inefficiencies, it is not well-understood or practised.\r\n\r\n\r\nAim\r\nThe study aimed to explore community service rehabilitation therapists’ understanding of social accountability.\r\n\r\n\r\nSetting\r\nThe study was conducted in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.\r\n\r\n\r\nMethods\r\nThis study used an interpretive exploratory design and purposively recruited 27 community service rehabilitation therapists namely, audiologists, speech-language therapists, occupational therapists, and physiotherapists working in public sector health facilities in rural and peri-urban areas. Four focus group discussions and four free attitude interviews were conducted, the results being thematically analysed.\r\n\r\n\r\nResults\r\nDespite most of the participants not being instructed in social accountability as part of their formal training or institutional induction, three themes emerged based on their experiences. These themes include describing social accountability, values of social accountability, and values of community-based rehabilitation applicable to social accountability.\r\n\r\n\r\nConclusion\r\nInclusion of instruction on social accountability as part of their formal training and health facility induction would contribute to rehabilitation therapists’ understanding of social accountability.\r\n\r\n\r\nContribution\r\nThe study contributes to data on rehabilitation education and community service training regarding social accountability within a South African context and has captured how experiences gained during community service contribute to the rehabilitation therapists’ understanding of social accountability.\r\n