The Hypothesis-Oriented Algorithm for Clinicians II (HOAC II): a guide for patient management

In this era of health care accountability, a need exists for a new decision-making and documentation guide in physical therapy. The original Hypothesis-Oriented Algorithm for Clinicians (HOAC) provided clinicians and students with a framework for science-based clinical practice and focused on the remediation of functional deficits and how changes in impairments related to these deficits. The HOAC II was designed to address shortcomings in the original HOAC and be more compatible with contemporary practice, including the Guide to Physical Therapist Practice. Disablement terminology is used in the HOAC II to guide clinicians and students when documenting patient care and incorporating evidence into practice. The HOAC II, like the HOAC, can be applied to a patient regardless of age or disorder and allows for identification of problems by physical therapists when patients are not able to communicate their problems. A feature of the HOAC II that was lacking in the original algorithm is the concept of prevention and how to justify and document interventions directed at prevention.