Physiotherapy

In Austria, as in many other countries, the older population continues to grow. Often elderly people prefer staying in their own homes for as long as they can, and only move into a nursing home at a later stage in their lives or only if need be. However, to respond to this important and understandable request for independence, family members and informal caregivers have to take on challenging responsibilities. Our project aims to support these individuals in home care for elderly people.

Even though increasing digitalisation reduces handwriting activities, the intensive use of a handwriting tool can lead to problems in the hand or finger areas. Since these problems are often induced by too much pressure and excessive forces during the handwriting process, an ideal design shall help in reducing them. Such an innovative design will be investigated in a cooperative study with the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Professional Identity (PI) has been defined as an ongoing transformative evolutionary process. PI is the adoption of specific beliefs, attributes and (ethical) values and experiences to become a member of a profession or the way individuals „think and act in line with the… group, … expressed by normative behaviour and loyalty”. Lacking clarity of PI can lead negatively to a professional’s attenuated perceived self-value, can weaken the profession itself and the confidence in performing her/his role. On the other hand, a well-developed concept of one’s PI can lead to enhanced professional confidence and a better exercise of the profession chosen.

The objectives of this scoping review are 1) to provide a comprehensive overview of the current evidence on eccentric training modalities and flexibility, joint range of motion and/or fascicle length in the rehabilitation process of lower limb musculoskeletal disorders; 2) to describe in detail the modalities of training including dosage of eccentric training during the specific tissue healing phases; and 3) to identify the need for future research.

Patients with chronic diseases require specific skills for managing their symptoms. Therefore, an education programme for chronically ill people will be developed at the University of Applied Sciences for Health Professionals Upper Austria. The programme will comprise six workshops, individual coaching sessions, and regular group meetings.

The programme will be implemented in a primary care centre. Experiences, effectiveness, and acceptance will be evaluated in a study.

In Austria, nursing predominantly takes place at home. Mainly relatives or informal caregivers working for agencies which provide personal assistance are involved. Professional nurses and medical specialists are often contacted at a very late stage. This leaves both family and informal caregivers with a variety of challenges.

With age, the performance and independence of people decrease. This is often further increased by illnesses and injuries. In addition to movement restrictions and problems in carrying out activities of daily life, there is a reduction of participation in social life and consequently in the quality of life.

E-learning is defined as „all types of learning with the use of digital media, either the presentation or the distribution of learning material or the communication between students and teachers“ (Kerres und Preußler 2012). In physiotherapy education parts of lessons could be added by e-learning, to offer students the opportunity to learn and repeat at their own responsibilty.

In addition to the increasing use of digital technologies in healthcare, there is also an increased use of health apps in private life. A common focus of digital solutions is often on promoting physical activity or improving musculoskeletal complaints. To develop these digital solutions, companies need knowledge and the latest findings in the fields of anatomy, physiotherapy and motion analysis. According to the University of Applied Sciences for Health Professions Upper Austria, the FFG qualification seminar "Moving" contributes to the improvement of existing digital solutions and the development of new innovations.

The prevalence of work-related physical stress in primary school teachers worldwide depending on the region ranges from 32% to 67%. The three most affected regions of the body are the neck (39% to 69%), the lower back (38% to 48%) and the shoulders (28% to 73%)(Moom et al., 2015; Karakaya et al., 2015; Yue et al., 2012; Korkmaz et al., 2011; Chong and Chan, 2010; Nurul et al., 2010; Cardoso et al., 2009).

The aim of stroke rehabilitation is to significantly increase the patient’s quality of life. In addition to traditional therapy, the use of more widespread consumer electronics (e.g. smart phones, tablets, gesture-controlled devices or virtual reality devices) can help to support the rehabilitation.

The term “subacromial pain syndrome“ covers many shoulder pains, often clinically difficult to differentiate. Among the most commonly diagnosed are Subacromial Impingement-Syndrome, Tendinitis calcarea, Bursitis subacromialis, Periarthropathia humeroscapularis or degenerative changes in the rotator cuff.

Fitness Trackers and Fitness Apps have rapidly gained popularity during the last five years. As part of our research focus on assistive technology, project „New Generation“ investigates, how smart phone appliances can contribute to health promotion for elderly persons by increasing physical activity levels. According to WHO recommendations, older adults should engage in at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity per week.

Operating theatre nurses work in sterile zones under the supervision of surgeons and are responsible for preparing surgical instruments before procedures, keeping count of surgical instruments and passing instruments to surgeons and surgical assistants. More than 50% spend their time in a standing position and standing for long hours (up to 10 hours for some surgical procedures, such as a lumbar fusion) is a significant contributor to lower back pain and pain in the other body areas.

The Klippel-Trenaunay-Syndrome is a rare congenital development disorder of the vessels, which are linked with multiple vessel malformations in the arterial, venous and lymphatic area. Due to the rarity of the disease there is currently very little evidence on treatments and the majority of these are in the form of Case Reports.

A brachial plexus lesion is able to induce alterations in the peripheral and the central nervous system, leading to neuropathic pain. Treatment methods targeting the reoganisation of central supraspinal information processing have shown promising results in the last few years.

Rationale, Aims and Objectives: Research examining the use of evidence-based practice (EBP) in physical therapy in many countries has revealed positive attitudes, varying degrees of EBP use and barriers at practitioner-, patient- and organizational levels. In contrast to these countries, Austria does not have an academic or research tradition in physical therapy.

The decrease in physical activity among children in developed societies and the consequential long-term effects on health and development is a major challenge already today and for the future. The Upper Austrian Department of Health, in collaboration with the University of Applied Sciences for Health Professions (Physiotherapy Program), has therefore drafted a physical activity program for after school care, based on the general criteria of health promotion (e.g. empowerment, multiplicative approach, etc.). A pilot project in selected after school care facilities started in the school year 2013/14.