Nature, ethics and history of the profession

• The health care system in the Federal Republic of Germany and international cooperation in health care
• Current issues in the fields of professional and health care policies
• Health programmes of international organisations, in particular the World Health Organization and Council of Europe
• Labour and professional regulations relevant for carrying out the profession
• Accident prevention, legal conditions concerning maternity leave, occupational safety, youth welfare, youth protection
• Introduction to laws concerning hospitals, epidemics, radiation protection, medication and drugs
• Regulations under criminal, civil and public law relevant for carrying out the profession, legal status of patients and guardians
• Social policy including an introduction into social security systems (social insurance, social benefits, practical support offered by welfare states)
• The basis of public law and order in the Federal Republic of Germany

General anatomy + lessons using anatomical preparations at the Strasbourg Anatomical Institute

• Anatomical nomenclature and definitions
• Axes, planes, orientation system
• General cytology
• General histology
• The structure of the skeletal system and general introduction to joints

Functional anatomy of the locomotor system.

• General functional aspects of the organs involved in movement
• Palpation of the organs involved in movement
• Specific functional aspects of the shoulder girdle and upper extremities
• Specific functional aspects of the pelvis and lower extremities
• Specific functional aspects of the spine and head

Anatomy of the internal organs

• Overview of the internal organs
• Cardiovascular system
• Respirationssystem
• Blood and defence system
• Digestive system
• Genitourinary system
• Endocrine system

Anatomy of the nervous system and the sensory organs

• Introduction to the nervous system
• Macroscopic anatomy of the nervous system
• Central nervous system
• Peripheral nervous system
• Vegetative nervous system
• Functional anatomy of the nervous system
• Anatomy of the sensory organs and the skin

Basics of cell physiology

Physiology of the nervous and sensory systems

• Central nervous system
• Vegetative nervous system
• Motor systems
• General sensory physiology
• Somatovisceral sensory system
• Balance system
• Nociception and pain

Physiology of the muscles

• Skeletal muscles
• Molecular mechanisms of contraction
• Regulation of muscle contractions
• Muscle mechanics
• Muscle energetics
• Smooth muscle tissue

Physiology of the heart, blood and vessels

• Cardiac excitation, cardiac mechanics and cardiac energetics
• Functions, volume and composition of the blood
• Physiological mechanisms of the immune response
• Arterial, venous and lymphatic system
• Regulation of the entire circulatory system
• Pulmonary and portal circulation

Physiology of the respiratory system

• Ventilation and mechanics of breathing
• Pulmonary gas exchange
• Transport of respiratory gases
• Cellular respiration

Physiology of the digestive, genitourinary, metabolic and endocrine systems

Interaction between the systems

• Cell pathology 
• Disease and causes of disease
• Progression and symptoms of disease
• Inflammation and oedemas
• Degenerative changes
• Growth and disturbance of growth, benign and malignant neoplasms
• Disturbance of immune responses
• Local and general circulatory disturbances, bleeding
• Disruption of gas exchange and oxygen supply

• Internal medicine
• Orthopaedics/traumatology
• Surgery/traumatology
• Neurology
• Psychiatry
• Gynaecology and obstetrics
• Paediatrics
• Dermatology
• Geriatrics
• Rheumatology
• Occupational medicine
• Sports medicine

• General hygiene and environmental protection
• Personal hygiene
• Bacteriology, virology and parasitology
• Preventing and controlling infection
• Disinfection, sterilisation
• Water hygiene

• General emergency procedures
• First aid for injuries
• Haemostasis and wound dressing
• Dealing with shock and resuscitation
• Treatment of broken bones
• Transport of injured patients
• Emergency procedures for accidents in the workplace
• Bandaging techniques
• Students receive a certificate proving their first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation skills

• Basics of physics, mechanics and mathematics
• Principles of mechanical equilibrium and calculation of joint strength
• Kinematics of joints in the human body
• Static and dynamic determination of joint strength
• Biomechanics of muscles, tendons and bones
• Biomechanics and ergonomy

• Presentations and discussions, introduction to academic work, documentation
• Creating spoken and written reports
• Using and evaluating German and foreign-language specialist literature
• Introduction to specialist terminology

Psychology

• Individuals as single beings in which body and mind interact as one
• The therapist’s task of patient management, introduction to personality psychology
• Psychological problems of specific groups of patients, in particular patients with acute or chronic diseases, those with an unfavourable prognosis, children, people with mental health problems, patients with age-related diseases and the disabled
• Introduction to group dynamics in treatment processes
• Conversational skills, supervision

Pedagogy

• Basics of pedagogy
• Introduction to special needs education

Sociology

• Basics of sociology
• Social context – experiences of living with a disease
• Social status – influence on the progression of the disease and how it is coped with

• Basics and the present standing of prevention
• Healthy living and promoting a healthy lifestyle 
• Basics of rehabilitation
• Rehabilitation facilities and their staff
• Medical, professional and social rehabilitation
• Rehabilitation planning and implementation as part of an interdisciplinary team

• Basics of exercise concepts 
• Types of stress arising from exercise
• Exercise structures and principles
• Transfer of general concepts of exercise to prevention and medical rehabilitation
• Psychological aspects of exercise

• Basics of diagnosis
• Inspection
• Functional checks
• Palpation
• Measurement techniques
• Reflexes
• Perception of acoustic irregularities
• Systematics of diagnosis
• Documentation
• Making diagnoses
• Creation of treatment plans

• Basics of diagnosis
• Inspection
• Functional checks
• Palpation
• Measurement techniques
• Reflexes
• Perception of acoustic irregularities
• Systematics of diagnosis
• Documentation
• Making diagnoses
• Creation of treatment plans

• Basics of physical therapy techniques 
• Respiratory therapy
• Relaxation techniques
• Physiotherapy using a sling suspension device
• Physiotherapy using a hydrotherapy pool
• Gait training
• Manual therapy according to Kaltenborn, Sohier and McKenzie (MDT)
• Functional analysis
• Medical treatment using exercise and a practical course at the Dr Bientzle Health Centre in Sinzheim (Dr. Bientzle Gesundheitszentrum Sinzheim) and the mid-Baden Physiotherapy Centre in Rastatt (Physiotherapiezentrum Mittelbaden Rastatt)
• Neurophysiological treatment methods
  • Proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation stretching (PNF) taught by therapists specialised in this area
  • Treatment according to the Bobath concept taught by Bobath therapists, including Bobath treatment for children
  • Treatment according to the Vojta concept, taught by Vojta therapists
  • Other procedures
• Psychomotor education
• Other treatment techniques (traditional taping incl. a certificate)

• Basics of massage therapy
• Techniques and effects of massage therapy
• Classic massage
• Connective tissue massage
• Special forms (foot reflexology, manual lymphatic drainage therapy and complex decongestive therapy, taught by manual lymphatic drainage instructors)
• Indications according to clinical characteristics, contraindications

• Introduction to electrotherapy, physical principles
• Introduction to electrodiagnostics
• Electrotherapy with low, medium and high-frequency currents, therapeutic ultrasound(all commonly used devices are available)
• Basics of phototherapy
• Basics of radiotherapy
• The school has a number of electrotherapy devices from the various common manufacturers

• Basics of and applications used in hydro- and balneotherapy
• Basics of and applications used in thermotherapy
• Basics of and applications used in inhalation therapy

 The school has its own set of therapy baths

• nternal medicine
• Surgery/traumatology
• Orthopaedics/traumatology
• Gynaecology and obstetrics
• Neurology/neurosurgery
• Psychiatry
• Paediatrics
• Geriatrics
• Rheumatology
• Occupational medicine
• Sports medicine
• Other

• Surgery
• Internal medicine
• Orthopaedics
• Neurology
• Paediatrics
• Psychiatry
• Gynaecology