Mapping competencies and capabilities for physiotherapists supporting the working age population: a scoping review to inform development of a work and health capability-informed framework.

Physiotherapists play an important role in supporting health and work for the working-age population, helping individuals to remain in or return to meaningful employment. While this work has traditionally been associated with Occupational Health (OH) physiotherapy, the need to address work and health spans multiple clinical and community settings. The term Physiotherapist for Work and Health more accurately reflects this broader scope and aligns with national priorities recognising work as a key determinant of health. However, the existing OH physiotherapy competency framework (Owen & Hunter, 2015) emphasises task-based skills and no longer reflects the complexity, autonomy, and cross-sector collaboration required in contemporary practice. A capability-informed framework is therefore needed to support progression from newly qualified to advanced and consultant-level practice. This scoping review will systematically map how work-and-health-related competencies, knowledge, skills, and capabilities are described across physiotherapy and related professions, to identify key concepts and developmental pathways. The review will follow Arksey and O’Malley’s methodological framework, refined by Levac et al., with guidance from the Joanna Briggs Institute, and will be reported in line with PRISMA-ScR. A structured Population, Concept and Context (PCC) framework will guide eligibility criteria, and both peer-reviewed and grey literature will be included. Data charting will be conducted using a piloted extraction framework and synthesised through descriptive mapping and qualitative thematic analysis. Findings will inform the development of a modern, capability-informed framework to guide education, professional development, and workforce planning for Physiotherapists for Work and Health.