A survey of views of heads of physiotherapy programmes of the influence of the Bologna Process on physiotherapy education across Europe

Abstract

Objectives: The objective of this study was to investigate the influence of the Bologna Process on physiotherapy education in Europe at an institutional level. This data would allow the physiotherapy education community to understand the extent the process has had on institutions in comparison to the European picture. Description: The Bologna Process was created in 1999 as an on-going pan-European initiative that was originally intended to harmonise the architecture of the European higher education system through the creation of a European Area of Higher Education (EAHE) by 2010. Throughout these years it would be expected that physiotherapy course programmes across Europe have changed and been redesigned to meet emerging challenges. There has been little study of how the Bologna Process has influenced physiotherapy education across Europe. This poster reports a questionnaire survey of Heads of Departments of physiotherapy schools across Europe. The research goal was to look closely at the objectives of the Bologna Process. A survey questionnaire was designed, piloted and forwarded to the Head of Department in physiotherapy schools situated in 28 European countries. Two hundred questionnaires were distributed electronically via a certified web-based survey programme. It asked a series of closed-ended questions that focused on the implementation of certain administrative measures that are closely associated or linked to the objectives of the Bologna Process. Respondents were asked to indicate which of these measures were implemented in their institution and from these to indicate the extent of their application. The response rate for the survey was 48.5% (97). The data were processed and analysed using descriptive statistics. Implications: The data from the response to the survey of Heads of Department of physiotherapy schools reveal that the objectives of the Bologna Process have been implemented, to different extents, in most but not all countries and provides information on institutional implementation and application of the objectives that may serve as a benchmark for programmes to compare their position to other programmes.