
The total training course time is more than 4,500 hours.
The training within the school
comprises minimum 2,900 hours of theoretical and practical lessons.
Nature and ethics of the profession, legal and political conditions
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
Anatomy
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
Physiology
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
General pathology
- 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
Specialist pathology
- Internal medicine
- Orthopaedics/traumatology
- Surgery/traumatology
- Neurology
- Psychiatry
- Gynaecology and obstetrics
- Paediatrics
- Dermatology
- Geriatrics
- Rheumatology
- Occupational medicine
- Sports medicine
Hygiene
- General hygiene and environmental protection
- Personal hygiene
- Bacteriology, virology and parasitology
- Preventing and controlling infection
- Disinfection, sterilisation
- Water hygiene
First aid and bandaging techniques
- 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
Applied physics and biomechanics
- 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
Writing using specialist language
- 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 / pedagogy / sociology
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
Prevention and rehabilitation
- 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
Concepts of exercise
- 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
Movement concepts
- Basics of diagnosis
- Inspection
- Functional checks
- Palpation
- Measurement techniques
- Reflexes
- Perception of acoustic irregularities
- Systematics of diagnosis
- Documentation
- Making diagnoses
- Creation of treatment plans
Physiotherapy assessment and examination techniques
- Basics of diagnosis
- Inspection
- Functional checks
- Palpation
- Measurement techniques
- Reflexes
- Perception of acoustic irregularities
- Systematics of diagnosis
- Documentation
- Making diagnoses
- Creation of treatment plans
Treatment using physical therapy techniques
- 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)
Massage therapy
- 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
Electro-, photo- and radiotherapy
- 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
Hydro-, balneo-, thermo- and inhalation therapy
- 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
Methodical application of physiotherapy in the following medical fields
- nternal medicine
- Surgery/traumatology
- Orthopaedics/traumatology
- Gynaecology and obstetrics
- Neurology/neurosurgery
- Psychiatry
- Paediatrics
- Geriatrics
- Rheumatology
- Occupational medicine
- Sports medicine
- Other






Training completed outside of the school
amounts to minimum 1,600 hours.
Practical training in hospitals or other suitable medical establishments specialising in various medical areas:
- Surgery
- Internal medicine
- Orthopaedics
- Neurology
- Paediatrics
- Psychiatry
- Gynaecology
The work placements take place in selected establishments (offices, rehab centres, hospitals and rehab clinics) all over Germany and in neighbouring Alsace (France).
Following successful completion of the course in full, you will receive the professional title “Staatl. anerkannte/r Physiotherapeut/in” (“State-Approved Physiotherapist”) (pursuant to the German occupational licensing regulation valid from 1st June 1994).
