Løgstrup's thinking: a contribution to ethics in physiotherapy.

Area of Science:

• Philosophy of Ethics
• Physiotherapy Practice

Background:

• Ethics is integral to physiotherapy, with a growing emphasis on ethical agency within clinical reasoning.
• Existing codes and guidelines support professional conduct.
• Knud E. Løgstrup's bottom-up, situational ethics offers a new philosophical framework.

Purpose of the Study:

• Introduce Løgstrup's situational ethics and its ontological framing.
• Explore the application of Løgstrup's ethical concepts to physiotherapy practice.
• Enhance understanding of ethical agency in physiotherapy through philosophical inquiry.

Main Methods:

• Introduction to Løgstrup's situational ethics and its ontological framing.
• Analysis of four key themes: sensation and ethical claims, sovereign life utterances, relational responsibility, and poetic understandings.
• Reflection on the relevance of these themes to physiotherapy practice.

Main Results:

• Physiotherapy practice involves navigating uncertainty through tuned sensation and therapeutic attitude.
• Sensuous, narrative, and poetic meaning-making are crucial in physiotherapy.
• Physiotherapy facilitates self-discovery through new embodied experiences.
• Ethical claims and professional codes are central to physiotherapy conduct.

Conclusions:

• Løgstrup's situational ethics provides a valuable philosophical lens for understanding ethical agency in physiotherapy.
• Integrating philosophical insights can deepen the ethical dimensions of physiotherapy practice.
• Emphasizing sensation, interdependence, and embodied experience enriches ethical reasoning in physiotherapy.