EDUCATION OF PHYSIOTHERAPISTS AND CHIROPRACTORS

Caregivers who want to work with evidence-based treatment of patients with back problems are certified through a 2-day course to train them to deliver the GLA:D®BACK program.

The course updates participants with the latest knowledge about back pain, about evidence-based treatment, and about the need to record patient data in the clinical registry to create new knowledge. Participating chiropractors and physiotherapists are also given a thorough instruction of the GLA:D®BACK approach from the first individual consultation and registration in the GLA:D®BACK registry, the patient education and exercises and the completion of the program. Participants learn how to best help patients take control of their back pain and to function well in everyday life despite back problems. The overall approach is that people with back problems need a balance between the capability they have (physical and mental) and the demands they are exposed to.

All practical elements of GLA:D®BACK are trained and participants receive all necessary materials to deliver GLA:D®BACK directly after the course. In this way, GLA:D®BACK provides optimal conditions for clinical guideline-based care of the treatment of back pain to be implemented in practice.

After the course, participants are certified as providers of GLA:D®BACK. Maintaining certification requires compliance with the principles of GLA:D®BACK and that a GLA:D®BACK course is offered at the clinic within 6 months of completing the training course.

For a program to be a GLA:D®BACK program, all three elements that are part of GLA:D®BACK must be included:

  1. 2 x patient education, based on GLA:D®BACK material
  2. exercises, based on GLA:D®BACK material, and
  3. recording data in the GLA:D®BACK registry.

If one of the elements is not included in the process, the program cannot be called GLA:D®BACK. SDU reserves the right to introduce regular re-certification requirements.

Starting up a GLA:D®BACK program

After the course, certified clinicians have access to all the material to be used for patient education (2 x slideshows and text suggestions), for exercises (protocols for patients with exercises and suggestions for both progression and regression), patient information leaflets, collaborator folders, posters, access to the database to record test results, objectives, etc.

During the course, time is allocated to develop a plan for how clinicians can start a program in their clinic. A physiotherapist with several years of experience with GLA:D®BACK reviews the practical part of the implementation during a busy day at that clinician’s clinic. Furthermore, he/she answers any questions the clinician has. If there are challenges later, clinicians can get support by emailing gladryg@sdu.dk. If there are no patients registered in the database after 6 months, the clinic will be contacted.