User involvement and experiential knowledge in interprofessional rehabilitation: a grounded theory study

Area of Science:

• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Health Services Research
• Patient-Centered Care

Background:

• User involvement is vital for developing relevant healthcare services.
• Understanding how patient experiential knowledge is incorporated into clinical practice is essential.
• This study focuses on rehabilitation professionals' perspectives.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore how rehabilitation professionals recognize and utilize patients' experiential knowledge.
• To deepen the understanding of user involvement in clinical practice.
• To identify facilitators and barriers in incorporating patient knowledge.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative design utilizing a grounded theory approach.
• Data collection through observations of interprofessional meetings.
• Individual semi-structured interviews with rehabilitation professionals.

Main Results:

• User involvement was recognized as formal or authentic; authentic involvement included patient experiential knowledge.
• Gaps between patient knowledge and professional expertise were identified.
• Challenges included managing external information sources and patients' reduced insight.

Conclusions:

• Patient experiential knowledge is a key component of the professional knowledge base.
• User involvement and patient knowledge are considered integral to clinical practice.
• Improving user involvement requires understanding practical issues and potential negative consequences.