“The best of a bad situation?” A mixed methods survey exploring patients’ perspectives on physiotherapy-led online group exercise programmes

INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 pandemic saw the migration of many physiotherapy-led group exercise programmes towards online platforms. This online survey aimed to ascertain the patients’ views of online group exercise programmes (OGEP), including their satisfaction with various aspects of these programmes, the advantages and disadvantages and usefulness beyond the pandemic. METHODS: A mixed-methods design was utilised with a cross-sectional national online survey of patients who had previously attended a physiotherapy-led OGEP in Ireland. The survey collected both qualitative and quantitative data. Descriptive statistics were used to summarise the ordinal and continuous data and conventional content analysis was used to analyse the free-text responses. RESULTS: In total, 94 patients completed the surveys. Fifty percent of patients questioned would prefer in-person classes. Despite only a quarter of patient respondents preferring online classes going forward, satisfaction with the OGEPs was high with nearly 95% of respondents somewhat or extremely satisfied. Decreased travel and convenience were cited as the main benefits of OGEPs. Decreased social interaction and decreased direct observation by the physiotherapist were the main disadvantages cited. CONCLUSION: Patients expressed high satisfaction rates overall with online classes, but would value more opportunities for social interaction. Although 50% of respondents would choose in-person classes in the future, offering both online and in-person classes beyond the pandemic may help to suit the needs of all patients and improve attendance and adherence.