The changing face of Australian physiotherapy

Abstract

The practice of physiotherapy in Australia has undergone extensive change over the past 15 years. All aspects of education, practice and research reflect the change. The changes principally stem from the recommendations of government committees in the 1960s to incorporate physiotherapy schools into major educational institutions. Patterns of physiotherapy service delivery and control have shifted from total medical dependence to greater degrees of independence. Increasingly physiotherapy is viewed as an entry-point into health care delivery. The development of a National Association that now incorporates the previous eight separate state and territory associations has facilitated and accelerated these changes. Research, both clinical and applied, is now seen as a necessary part of practice and is considered central to further development in physiotherapy.