Physical therapy in occupational health and ergonomics: practical applications and innovative research approaches

This letter to the editor aims to enlighten the readers of the Brazilian Journal of Physical Therapy (BJPT) on the relevance and conceptual framework, practical applications, current scenario, and advances of physical therapy in occupational health and ergonomics. Additionally, this letter presents challenges to be overcome and perspectives for physical therapists as well as the scientific community. We have witnessed the progress and achievements of the BJPT over the last two decades 1. These advances have been supported by the researchers' expertise, the quality of publications, and the scientific evolution of the physical therapy profession worldwide. It is well known that the physical therapy profession has a diversity of knowledge related to its specialties and public health demands. This diversity can be attributed to aspects such as relevant clinical outcomes, target populations, and a wide variety of settings in which physical therapists can work 2. In terms of historical context, physical therapy has been influenced by economic, cultural, and educational aspects 3 of public and research policies that prioritize some fields of expertise over others. Among physical therapy's specialties, occupational health and ergonomics is a novel example which is both increasing in clinical relevance and dissemination by professionals in a range of settings. This relevance can be easily seen by the increasing number of physical therapists involved in occupational health and ergonomics initiatives worldwide. The impact of this relevance has also been reflected by an increase in demand for improvements in worker health and company productivity. It is important to point out that advanced skills and clinical competencies are necessary to improve our professional capabilities and to expand the presence of physical therapists in different occupational settings. However, our professional practice is still guided by weak scientific evidence regarding the effectiveness of intervention strategies and the validity of instruments used for the identification of workplace risk factors, as well as for the evaluation of physical and functional worker health. Why is this so? Some reasons are presented below in order to understand this scenario. Contrasting with the broad spectrum of professional activities promoted by physical therapists in occupational health and ergonomics, scientific research is only at an incipient stage. Although research within occupational health and ergonomics has been conducted worldwide, there are few physical therapists in this field, which has resulted in a limited number of published studies compared with other specialties such as musculoskeletal and cardiorespiratory physical therapy. The …