ABSTRACT

Introduction: One of the assumption for successful research and the development of physiotherapeutic scientifi c knowledge is terminology and system, precisely and uniquely defi ned basic phenomenon of physiotherapy science.

Aim: To determine the core phenomenon of physiotherapy science.

Materials and methods: A pilot study was conducted on a sample of 20 respondents. Data collection was applied to the Delphi method in two cycles. In the fi rst cycle, respondents listed one hundred physiotherapy terms, while in the second cycle the respondents chose between the offered terms of at least twenty to a maximum of one hundred that they consider to be the core of physiotherapy science. The selected terms are ranked according to the frequency of recording.

Results: In the fi rst cycle, a total of 868 terms were collected. In the second cycle there are 428 terms (nouns that are not related to medical equipment, aids, and anatomical parts of the body). 50% and more of all respondents recorded a total of 24 phenomenon that were grouped into fi ve key phenomenon of physiotherapy: movement, activity (including function), posture, motor control and physiotherapy.

Conclusion: The results contribute to the development of phenomenology of physiotherapy science, the standardization in clinical practice and creation the dictionary of physiotherapy science.

Key words: phenomenon, physiotherapy science, physiotherapy, delphi method