When algorithms don't care: physiotherapy and the post-professional turn

Area of Science:

• Healthcare policy
• Sociology of professions
• Digital health

Background:

• Physiotherapy, like other health professions, faces significant restructuring.
• Gilles Deleuze's theories on societies of control provide a framework for understanding this shift.
• The traditional professional model is being challenged by economic and technological forces.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the transformation of physiotherapy into a post-professional era.
• To explore the impact of late-stage capitalism, unbundling of professional claims, and digital disruption on healthcare.
• To introduce the concept of a "society of indifference" driven by algorithms.

Main Methods:

• Drawing on Gilles Deleuze's analysis of societies of control.
• Examining the emergence of a "society of indifference" driven by predictive algorithms.
• Case study of Flok Health, an AI physiotherapy clinic, to illustrate the impact on practitioners' agency.

Main Results:

• Physiotherapy is entering a post-professional era marked by practitioner marginalization.
• Digital technologies and AI are automating core professional tasks like assessment and diagnosis.
• The shift threatens not only tasks but also the agency and autonomy of human physiotherapists.

Conclusions:

• The rise of AI in physiotherapy necessitates a reevaluation of the profession's future.
• Physiotherapists must adapt by focusing on unique human elements rather than defending traditional territory.
• Exploring the "intensities" of practice may offer a path forward in a society of indifference.