Background: Physiotherapy is a developed profession in other countries it is still developing in India and this study is to know about the present status of physiotherapy in India especially Punjab.

Objective of the study: To study the view towards specialization in physiotherapy among physiotherapists, physiotherapy interns and physiotherapy final year students in Punjab. According to the results obtained it could be easier to know whether specialization in profession will lead to satisfaction and better future of the professionals.

Methods and materials: Verbal introduction of the survey was given after that physiotherapy specialization view questionnaire along with the consent form was given to the physiotherapists, physiotherapy final year students and interns. Data was collected and analyzed and results were obtained.

Result: The study shows that 81% of subjects prefer going for specialization in physiotherapy

Conclusion: This study revealed that students come with a positive view to specialize in Physiotherapy.

Physiotherapy , Survey , Sports

Kaprail M, Kaur J, Kaur P, Jetly S, Sarin A (2019) View towards Specialization in Physiotherapy among Physiotherapists, Physiotherapy Interns and Physiotherapy Students. Ann Sports Med Res 6(1): 1138.

The history of physiotherapy, in India, was laid back in 1952 following an epidemic of poliomyelitis. Slowly and steadily physiotherapy did establish a firm base in India with lot of new developments, but still by large, physiotherapy remains a secondary referral profession not only in our country, but in other countries too.

The role of a Physiotherapist is to deal with application of physiotherapy skills & knowledge to the assessment, design, delivery & evaluation of physiotherapeutic treatments in the management of the various conditions of acute or chronic sickness, disability or handicap. The history of physiotherapy, in India, was laid back in 1952 following an epidemic of poliomyelitis. Slowly and steadily physiotherapy did establish a firm base in India with lot of new developments [1].

Now there are 24 universities conducting Undergraduate Physiotherapy program in Northern India. The level of education for physical therapists should reflect the current and future needs of professional practice and society and changes in physical therapy roles and function as well as changes in the legislation that regulates physical therapy practice [2]

The professional education is influenced by several factors that would affect the professional outcomes [3]. These factors include changes in socioeconomic conditions; changes in patterns of health care delivery; an expanding scope of practice and relevant knowledge as well as a perceived need for greater depth of knowledge in physical therapy; societal demands for accountability and societal approval of a graduate degree as a symbol of professional status, coupled with the desire of physical therapists to be viewed as professionals [4]

The students’ persuasion of a career in physiotherapy seemed to be truly driven by a passion for the branch. This fact was further strengthened by the observation that a significantly high number of students wanted to pursue post graduation (PG) in the same field, thus proving that it was genuinely the students’ personal choice to pursue physiotherapy [5]

Need for the study

The study will investigate items considered important in understanding the attitude of physiotherapy students towards their career and explore the limitation in the development of the discipline in India and the suggestions to overcome them.

Research design and Methodology

The survey was conducted in Ludhiana city (Punjab) on 60 Physiotherapy College subjects. The age criterion was both Male and Female subjects between 20-50 years of physical Therapists and physiotherapy students and interns were included and a purposeful random sampling technique was used for collecting data. Verbal introduction of the survey was given after that Students view questionnaire containing questions like future job prospects and salary raise and better patient care after post graduation along with the consent form was given .Data was collected and statistical analysed was results were obtained (Figure).

Study of masters in physiotherapy adds a benefit and knowledge and a better way to a physiotherapist both clinically and other wise. The view towards specialization in physiotherapy among physiotherapists, physiotherapy interns and physiotherapy students the study shows that 81% of subjects prefer going for masters and specialization in physiotherapy.

This study revealed that students come with a positive view to specialize in Physiotherapy. Physiotherapy is a developed profession in other countries it is still developing in India and this study is to know about the present status of physiotherapy in India in relation to view of specialization in Punjab.

From this survey revealed that students come with a positive attitude for specialization but with progressing years their positivity towards their profession and specialization keeps

Figure 1: Graph shows that 90% subjects agreed that they will be interested in doing specialization in physiotherapy and 10 % of subjects showed no interest in doing specialization in physiotherapy.

on decreasing. Some of the reasons cited for stagnation of professional growth are lack of statuary council, awareness and lack of job opportunities in government and private sectors, low pay scale.

Study of masters in physiotherapy adds a benefit and knowledge and a better way to a physiotherapist both clinically and other wise. Globally Physical therapy training ranges from basic work education in hospitals and outpatient clinics to professional Bachelor, Master and Doctorate degrees and programs. Each area of Physiotherapy intervention has its own specialized techniques and is based on scientific evidence. The techniques used in Physiotherapy have been evolved since the ancient times of history [6].

According to Beattie and Nelson (2007) in Physiotherapy, a broad statement Prognosis predicts a patient’s likely status, or degree of change, at some time in the future; at the level of the individual, a prognosis provides the practitioner and patient with critical information, including the patient’s expected future health status, likely response to intervention, and likely duration of treatment [7].

Bennett and Cameron J (2004) in an editorial of Australian Journal of Physiotherapy suggests that Specialization in physiotherapy practice is a sign of maturity, and brands us as a profession rather than an industry and will provide greater challenges and incentives within the physiotherapy career structure [8]

1. Shimpi A, Writer H, Shyam A, Dabadghav R. Role of Physiotherapy in India – A Cross-sectional Survey to Study the Awareness and Perspective among Referring Doctors. J Med Thes. 2014; 2: 11-15.

2. Nidhi Kalra, Sanjeev Gupta, Charvi Vij, Ashu Gupta. Contents and features of “syllabi” for under graduate physiotherapy education in Northern India: a cross sectional study. Int J Physiother Res. 2015; 3: 1244-1249.

3. Selvam R. Current status of postgraduate Physical therapy curriculum in India: articulated or disarticulated? An issue Paper. J. Phys Ther. 2010; 1: 32-38.

4. Warren SC, Pierson FM. Comparison of characteristics and attitudes of entry-level bachelor’s and master’s degree students in physical therapy. Phys Ther. 1994; 74: 333-348.

5. Jain R. “Career choice among physiotherapy students at Mangalore, India.” J Clin Diagnos Res. 2011: 344-346.

6. Khalid MT, Sarwar MF, Sarwar MH, Sarwar M. Current role of physiotherapy in response to changing healthcare needs of the society. International Journal of Education and Information Technology. 2015; 1: 105-110.

7. Beattie PF, Nelson RM. Evaluating research studies that address prognosis for patients receiving physical therapy care: A clinical update. Phys Ther. 2007; 87: 1527-1535.

8. Bennett CJ, Grant MJ. Specialization in physiotherapy: a mark of maturity. Aust J Physiother. 2004; 50: 3-5.