{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T15:38:51Z","timestamp":1785425931835,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":36,"publisher":"AOSIS","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,16]],"date-time":"2026-07-16T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1784160000000},"content-version":"unspecified","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background:\u00a0Mental illness (MI) is a leading cause of global ill health and disability, with nearly half of the population affected by mental health (MH) conditions at some point in their lives. Consequently, all healthcare professionals, including physiotherapy students, will inevitably encounter patients with MI in clinical practice. However, their preparedness and ability to manage these patients remain unclear.\nObjectives:\u00a0To explore physiotherapy students\u2019 perceptions of their preparedness and ability to manage patients with co-existing (undiagnosed or known) MH conditions alongside a primary physical health presentation in clinical practice.\nMethod:\u00a0A qualitative, exploratory, descriptive design was employed. Sixteen fourth-year physiotherapy students from the University of the Western Cape (mean age 22.8 \u00b1 1.32 years) participated in semi-structured individual interviews conducted either face-to-face or online. Data were thematically analysed using Braun and Clarke\u2019s six-phase method.\nResults:\u00a0Four themes emerged from the data: (1) Evolving understandings of MI: knowledge, sources, and lived experiences; (2) Negotiating care within personal and clinical realities; (3) Insufficient alignment between theory and practice; and (4) Making sense of physiotherapy\u2019s contribution to MH care.\nConclusion:\u00a0The findings highlight the need to strengthen both theoretical and practical components of MH curricula and training within undergraduate physiotherapy programmes.\nClinical implications:\u00a0Improved curricular integration may enhance students\u2019 preparedness, ability, confidence and competence when managing patients with MI, while supporting more holistic and effective patient care.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.4102\/sajp.v82i1.2355","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,15]],"date-time":"2026-07-15T07:13:05Z","timestamp":1784099585000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.4102\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Physiotherapy students\u2019 perceptions of managing patients with mental illness: A qualitative exploration at a South African university"],"prefix":"10.4102","volume":"82","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0007-2234-599X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maylene","family":"Salo","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/00h2vm590","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"University of the Western Cape"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4419-6490","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Farhana","family":"Karachi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/00h2vm590","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"University of the Western Cape"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0350-5122","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Danelle","family":"Hess","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/00h2vm590","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"University of the Western Cape"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1290-6876","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Shamila","family":"Gamiet","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/00h2vm590","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}],"name":"University of 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