Assessment of Home Exercise Adherence in Patients with Non-Surgical Post-Traumatic Neck Pain: A Study Protocol Using the Exercise Adherence Rating Scale

Background/Objectives: Whiplash-associated disorders (WADs) and non-surgical post-traumatic neck pain often require active rehabilitation, including prescribed home exercise, where poor adherence can limit treatment effectiveness. This protocol describes a standardised observational method to assess home exercise adherence using the Exercise Adherence Rating Scale (EARS). Methods: This prospective protocol outlines eligibility criteria, recruitment settings, core variables, and a structured EARS administration procedure four weeks post-prescription. The primary outcome is the six-item EARS adherence section score. A target sample of approximately 75 participants will be recruited to ensure at least 62 analyzable participants. Outputs: The protocol will generate descriptive data on adherence levels, questionnaire completion rates, and missing data to evaluate implementation feasibility. Planned analyses testing potential associations between adherence and clinical variables will be strictly exploratory and hypothesis-generating. Conclusions: This study operationalizes a standardised method for tracking self-reported adherence in cervical trauma rehabilitation, enhancing methodological transparency and reproducibility.