Marcus Bateman
School of Medicine
Development of an Optimised Physiotherapy Treatment Package for People with Tennis Elbow – A Consensus Method Using an Online Nominal Group Technique
Background : This study aimed to combine best available research evidence with stakeholder opinion to develop an optimised physiotherapy treatment package for people with Tennis Elbow .
Method : An online Nominal Group Technique ( NGT ) approach was used , involving physiotherapists , NHS managers and patients . Participants were sent an evidence summary prior to the first meeting , which focussed on agreeing the types of intervention to include . The second meeting focussed on specific details of intervention delivery . All treatment options were discussed before anonymous voting and ranking of priority . Consensus for inclusion was set at 70 % based on OMERACT guidelines . Options with 30-69 % agreement were discussed again and a second vote was held allowing for a change of opinion .
Results : Meetings were attended by 10 physiotherapists with special interest in Tennis Elbow ( mean 18.7y qualified ), 2 NHS managers and 3 patients . The optimised physiotherapy treatment package included : advice & education , exercise therapy and orthotics . Specific components for each of these interventions were agreed such as : condition-specific advice , health promotion advice , exercise types , exercise dosage and orthosis type .
Conclusion : Online NGT consensus successfully developed an intervention for testing in a future pilot randomised controlled trial to contribute much needed evidence about the treatment of Tennis Elbow .
Postgraduate Conference 2021 Page 13