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Doctoral thesis: Quality of OA care

Simone smiling and looking into the camera while putting his thesis up on the wall
Simone Battista while hanging up his dissertation on the wall, it's an important tradition that follows the completion of his doctoral studies.

Simone Battista has successfully defended his doctoral thesis, concluding his time as a doctoral student.

We interviewed Simone Battista a few years ago during his work, please read more about it here
In his dissertation, which comprises four studies, the quality of care for individuals with osteoarthritis has been investigated. This quality of care depends not only on healthcare professionals’ knowledge but also on patients’ thoughts and preferences. Despite osteoarthritis being the most common joint disease worldwide, only 40% of patients receive the recommended first-line interventions. 

For those with osteoarthritis, exercise, self-management education, and dietary recommendations are the primary approaches. Simone Battista suggests that the limited adoption of evidence-based care may be influenced by cultural, sociodemographic, and economic factors.

Additionally, an Italian survey explored what physiotherapists know about treatment recommendations for osteoarthritis. Although most physiotherapists recognize the importance of proper osteoarthritis treatment, they do not always implement it consistently.

Simone and his team also interviewed patients to understand their perceptions of osteoarthritis. Some patients viewed exercise as a way to pass the time until a potential surgery. Furthermore, patients reported that healthcare providers often did not adequately discuss available first-line interventions for osteoarthritis.

The study also analysed data from the Swedish osteoarthritis registry. The researchers investigated whether factors such as socioeconomic background and lifestyle influenced adherence to exercise recommendations. Additionally, they explored whether individuals with lower socioeconomic status experienced more severe symptoms and received less assistance from healthcare providers.

You can read the entire dissertation here (opens in a new tab, Lund University)