The Europe Region of World Physiotherapy

The Europe Region of World Physiotherapy is a non-profit and a non-governmental organisation that represents the physiotherapy profession at European Level. The Organisation has a membership of 37 Physiotherapy Associations, one from each of the European countries, including all the EU Member States, EEA countries and all the EU applicant countries, representing approximately 194.619 physiotherapists in Europe.

The Europe Region of World Physiotherapy aims to:

• give visibility to physiotherapy and physical activity by promoting the profession, its benefits, education and research at European level;

• participate in the sensitisation and education of the population around Physiotherapy and physical activity in our Member Organisations’ countries and others by performing awareness campaigns, publications and other actions;

• support the physiotherapy profession’s research needs;

• support the development of evidence-based physiotherapy practice;

• be the European info point (network and database) for physiotherapy projects. In order to achieve its objectives, the Europe Region of World Physiotherapy is actively involved in several EU initiatives and networks (e.g., EU Health Policy Platform, Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan contact group) and collaborates with EU bodies (EU-OSHA, DG Health) and other European organisations (European Forum for Primary Care, EUPHA).

The Europe Region of World Physiotherapy has always had a close relation with the topics of education and obesity. It was an active member of the former EU Platform for action on Diet, Physical Activity and Health and has always had the fight against Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) and the factors contributing to them, including obesity, as one of its priorities. With regards to education, the Europe Region of World Physiotherapy has its own Education Working Group elected every two years and that is formed by physiotherapy educators from all over Europe. This Working Group will monitor the project and give recommendations to the project’s partners on the different deliverables. A number of the Europe Region of World Physiotherapy’s national members are the profession’s regulators at the national level, so the recommendations emerging from this project will have a direct impact in physiotherapy education in Europe.

 The Team involved in the PROMINENCE project:

• Emilia Kosińska

• Aitor Carpio García