THE EXPERIENCES OF PHYSIOTHERAPY IN PRESCHOOLS IN THE LIGHT OF A KINDERGARTEN RESEARCH IN HAJDÚBÖSZÖRMÉNY

• Published in: Különleges bánásmód Vol. 9; no. 3
• Main Authors: Antonia Kinczel, Mariann Fülöp-Pipó, Réka Pálinkás, Peter Židek, Nóra Laoues-Czimbalmos, Attila Lengyel, Anetta Müller
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: University of Debrecen 01-09-2023
• Subjects: deformities; internal medicine diseases; parents' opinions; pre-school physical education
• ISSN: 2498-5368
• DOI: 10.18458/KB.2023.3.27

The literature and research on physiotherapy in Hungary are not as complete as the research on physical education, so this article is also incomplete. Our research aimed to report on the experiences of physiotherapy sessions for preschool children within the physical education sector, as this area is less researched. Our research presents the experiences of children and their parents who have participated in pre-school physiotherapy in a sample of children attending the Good Shepherd Reformed Kindergarten in Hajdúböszörmény. The results are presented based on the analysis of a questionnaire filled in by 50 parents and an interview with the physiotherapy teacher who teaches in the kindergarten. The survey shows that 8% of parents of preschool children did not know that their child was attending such sessions, 92% of parents were informed, but 20% did not know how many development sessions their child was attending. The majority of parents follow up on their child's development, but consider the information provided by the teacher to be insufficient. The vast majority of parents were also aware of their child's diagnosis. Parents' opinions showed that they consider the existence of physiotherapy sessions important, as they consider it essential for the effective development of a growing organism. Parents also noted positive effects of physiotherapy sessions, such as improved posture, flexibility, reduced orthopaedic deformities, increased endurance, or improved dexterity and hand-foot coordination. Another important aspect, according to parents, is that these sessions are free of charge, take place during nursery school hours and they are playful. According to the physiotherapy teacher, the number of sessions is not sufficient to achieve optimal improvement, given that the vast majority of children only receive development in kindergarten. These results are useful and can be used in the training of kindergarten teachers or further training courses.