The Norwegian Association of Physiotherapists (NFF) organizes authorized physiotherapists, rotation candidates and students.
The Norwegian Association of Physiotherapists is a politically independent association.
NFF must:
The national meeting is held annually and is NFF's highest authority. The board of the association manages the association's interests between the national meetings and ensures proper organization of the association. The federal board is chaired by union leader Fred Hatlebrekke.
NFF's secretariat is headed by the general secretary, and consists of the union leader, general secretary and other 32 employees distributed on the editorial board of the journal Fysioterapeuten and four sections: Organization and communication, Personnel and finance, Subjects and Negotiation. The journal Fysioterapeuten follows Redaktørplakaten.
From 1 July 2014, NFF's members are automatically members in one of the association's five regions : Central, North, Oslo area, South-East and West. In addition, members can join one or more of NFF's 13 professional groups , the Young Physiotherapists 'Community ( UFF ) and the Commercial Physiotherapists' Group ( NFG ).
Unio
NFF was admitted as a member of the main organization UHO (later Unio) in December 2001. As of 17 December 2018, Unio had 13 member unions with a total of about 360,000 members. Unio is an important tool for the member organizations in the work with pay and working conditions and as an actor in socio-political involvement and influence.
WCPT
NFF is a member of the World Confederation of Physical Therapy (WCPT), which is an association of 106 national physiotherapist organizations with a total of more than 350,000 members (January 2015). The NFF co-founded the WCPT in 1951.
WCPT collaborates with several of the UN's sub-organizations and other international organizations on e.g. preventive health work and rehabilitation. WCPT has several subgroups and interest groups that stimulate cooperation in various subject areas. WCPT is divided into five regions, and NFF actively participates in the European Region of WCPT.
Nordic co-operation
The management of the Nordic physiotherapist associations meet every year to discuss current professional policy, professional and educational policy issues.
The mainland meeting 2019 adopted the vision, values and main goals for the period 2020–2022. The main objectives are rooted in NFF's purpose, which is enshrined in NFF's laws, section 2.
The Norwegian Association of Physiotherapists is a politically independent association.
NFF must:
On the basis of an assessment of NFF's opportunities and challenges, the main goals for the organization have been formulated. The challenge picture is described below.
To make the goals clear, they are formulated point by point. Under each main goal, strategic goals have been prepared.
The organization's vision, values, main goals and strategic goals shall together be leading for NFF's work and priorities during the national meeting period.
Strong, proud and visible is a well-established vision, which will be continued for the national meeting period 2020–2022.
The overall
NFF must be characterized by a unifying culture. The organization must appear as an organization that speaks with one voice - and must be able to gather the members' commitment in a common position. NFF shall be an organization for all physiotherapists.
Community-
engaged Physiotherapy is important for large patient groups, and physiotherapists can also contribute in several areas of society. NFF must therefore show a high level of community involvement, and NFF's political views must be seen in a broader perspective - both in relation to society's needs and societal development.
Competent
The individual member has a responsibility to stay professionally up to date, and NFF shall contribute to this being possible. It is expected that employees in the secretariat and shop stewards also stay up to date within their area of competence - and NFF must facilitate this.
Brave
To be a union characterized by courage, it is required that the NFF dares to challenge established truths, take the difficult discussions, the ability to prioritize and make difficult choices. NFF should not allow itself to be governed by conventions, but encourage innovation, and challenge claims, policies and practices where it is natural.
Respectful
The association's activities must be characterized by respect for each other, others and others' views, also for actors who are critical of NFF's activities. These must be discussed and treated in a respectful manner, also in internal forums.
Members The
welfare state is based on tripartite cooperation, strong trade unions, strong employers' organizations and centrally coordinated wage negotiations. Many take the welfare state for granted, but we are now experiencing a slow pressure on important welfare schemes such as sick pay, disability benefits and work clearance, etc.
In order for NFF to be a powerful player in all the arenas we want to gain a foothold in, we are dependent on many members. Compared with a number of other unions and the public sector in general, where the degree of organization is 80 per cent, the degree of organization among physiotherapists is low. 64 percent of the physiotherapists who are at work are members. The fact that there are three unions that organize physiotherapists, and that have different objectives, further contributes to weakening physiotherapists' impact and our opportunities for influence. There is an increased risk of withdrawals from NFF in the transition from student to rotation, when starting out as a self-employed physiotherapist or in the event of changes in the life situation. Easily accessible information about the benefits of being part of the community and visibility of NFF's activities and results is important in this context.
Social development and political framework conditions
In Norway, we generally have good health and good health services, but the social health differences are greater than in most other European countries. A person with a low level of education lives on average 6-7 years shorter than a person with a high level of education. In addition, it seems that highly educated patients receive more health care than those with lower education. The national public health policy has been too little offensive, too little political will to prioritize preventive health work.
The national e-health initiative places great demands on physiotherapists' organization of the service. Introduction of One inhabitant - one medical record, increased focus on privacy and personal safety changes physiotherapists' everyday work. Electronic communication between health professionals and different levels of health services is still fragmented and deficient. This entails a risk of poor quality, efficiency and security in the interaction in the health services.
The proportion of time for administration increases; including journal requirements, epicrisis, interaction. This goes beyond time to patient-oriented work. Electronic collaboration schemes work too poorly, especially between the specialist health service and the municipal health service.
We are seeing an increasing division of the health service. There is an increased privatization where more public services are being put out to tender. This can in some cases mean that prices are pushed so low that the quality of the services provided must necessarily be harmed. In recent years, we have also seen an increase in private health insurance that provides access to physiotherapy outside the public health service.
Especially after the collaboration reform was introduced in 2012, we have experienced increased pressure on municipal health and care services as new tasks have been added, at the same time as patients have become worse and competence has not increased correspondingly. Offers in the specialist health service are being reduced, as we have seen in the rehabilitation field, without the offer being built up correspondingly in the municipal health service.
The increased pressure has also meant that priority must be given more strongly to the health service. The severity criterion has taken precedence, which is important for many patients with long-term pain and chronic diseases. For physiotherapists, this means that it must be prioritized harder than desired, and in some cases this can go beyond professional soundness. Physiotherapists experience that they face the priority challenges in everyday life when this must be done to a greater extent at a municipal or national level.
Other challenges that are important for physiotherapists and the health services include:
- An aging population
- A more sedentary population
- Mental health problems, especially among young people
- An obesity epidemic
- Many people live with prolonged pain
- A changed working life with increased digitalisation, efficiency, temporary employment and the boundary between working life and private life is blurred
- Globalization and climate change
Subjects, quality and ethics
Quality and ethics in the practice of the subject are challenged when physiotherapists move into gray areas between physiotherapy and other subject areas. NFF believes it is important for the profession to focus on gray areas in the subject, this challenges the profession's reputation. Physiotherapists experience competition from other health professionals and alternative therapists, physiotherapists must focus on what is physiotherapy and the quality of the service and what it means to be an authorized health professional.
The lack of joint management for all physiotherapists in the municipal health service means that our competence is not utilized well enough in collaboration with other professional groups.
1. Membership in NFF shall be the natural choice for all physiotherapists and physiotherapy students
Website：Norwegian Physiotherapy Association
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The Norwegian Association of Physiotherapists (NFF) organizes authorized physiotherapists, rotation candidates and students.
The Norwegian Association of Physiotherapists is a politically independent association.
NFF must:
The national meeting is held annually and is NFF's highest authority. The board of the association manages the association's interests between the national meetings and ensures proper organization of the association. The federal board is chaired by union leader Fred Hatlebrekke.
NFF's secretariat is headed by the general secretary, and consists of the union leader, general secretary and other 32 employees distributed on the editorial board of the journal Fysioterapeuten and four sections: Organization and communication, Personnel and finance, Subjects and Negotiation. The journal Fysioterapeuten follows Redaktørplakaten.
From 1 July 2014, NFF's members are automatically members in one of the association's five regions : Central, North, Oslo area, South-East and West. In addition, members can join one or more of NFF's 13 professional groups , the Young Physiotherapists 'Community ( UFF ) and the Commercial Physiotherapists' Group ( NFG ).
Unio
NFF was admitted as a member of the main organization UHO (later Unio) in December 2001. As of 17 December 2018, Unio had 13 member unions with a total of about 360,000 members. Unio is an important tool for the member organizations in the work with pay and working conditions and as an actor in socio-political involvement and influence.
WCPT
NFF is a member of the World Confederation of Physical Therapy (WCPT), which is an association of 106 national physiotherapist organizations with a total of more than 350,000 members (January 2015). The NFF co-founded the WCPT in 1951.
WCPT collaborates with several of the UN's sub-organizations and other international organizations on e.g. preventive health work and rehabilitation. WCPT has several subgroups and interest groups that stimulate cooperation in various subject areas. WCPT is divided into five regions, and NFF actively participates in the European Region of WCPT.
Nordic co-operation
The management of the Nordic physiotherapist associations meet every year to discuss current professional policy, professional and educational policy issues.
The mainland meeting 2019 adopted the vision, values and main goals for the period 2020–2022. The main objectives are rooted in NFF's purpose, which is enshrined in NFF's laws, section 2.
The Norwegian Association of Physiotherapists is a politically independent association.
NFF must:
On the basis of an assessment of NFF's opportunities and challenges, the main goals for the organization have been formulated. The challenge picture is described below.
To make the goals clear, they are formulated point by point. Under each main goal, strategic goals have been prepared.
The organization's vision, values, main goals and strategic goals shall together be leading for NFF's work and priorities during the national meeting period.
Strong, proud and visible is a well-established vision, which will be continued for the national meeting period 2020–2022.
The overall
NFF must be characterized by a unifying culture. The organization must appear as an organization that speaks with one voice - and must be able to gather the members' commitment in a common position. NFF shall be an organization for all physiotherapists.
Community-
engaged Physiotherapy is important for large patient groups, and physiotherapists can also contribute in several areas of society. NFF must therefore show a high level of community involvement, and NFF's political views must be seen in a broader perspective - both in relation to society's needs and societal development.
Competent
The individual member has a responsibility to stay professionally up to date, and NFF shall contribute to this being possible. It is expected that employees in the secretariat and shop stewards also stay up to date within their area of competence - and NFF must facilitate this.
Brave
To be a union characterized by courage, it is required that the NFF dares to challenge established truths, take the difficult discussions, the ability to prioritize and make difficult choices. NFF should not allow itself to be governed by conventions, but encourage innovation, and challenge claims, policies and practices where it is natural.
Respectful
The association's activities must be characterized by respect for each other, others and others' views, also for actors who are critical of NFF's activities. These must be discussed and treated in a respectful manner, also in internal forums.
Members The
welfare state is based on tripartite cooperation, strong trade unions, strong employers' organizations and centrally coordinated wage negotiations. Many take the welfare state for granted, but we are now experiencing a slow pressure on important welfare schemes such as sick pay, disability benefits and work clearance, etc.
In order for NFF to be a powerful player in all the arenas we want to gain a foothold in, we are dependent on many members. Compared with a number of other unions and the public sector in general, where the degree of organization is 80 per cent, the degree of organization among physiotherapists is low. 64 percent of the physiotherapists who are at work are members. The fact that there are three unions that organize physiotherapists, and that have different objectives, further contributes to weakening physiotherapists' impact and our opportunities for influence. There is an increased risk of withdrawals from NFF in the transition from student to rotation, when starting out as a self-employed physiotherapist or in the event of changes in the life situation. Easily accessible information about the benefits of being part of the community and visibility of NFF's activities and results is important in this context.
Social development and political framework conditions
In Norway, we generally have good health and good health services, but the social health differences are greater than in most other European countries. A person with a low level of education lives on average 6-7 years shorter than a person with a high level of education. In addition, it seems that highly educated patients receive more health care than those with lower education. The national public health policy has been too little offensive, too little political will to prioritize preventive health work.
The national e-health initiative places great demands on physiotherapists' organization of the service. Introduction of One inhabitant - one medical record, increased focus on privacy and personal safety changes physiotherapists' everyday work. Electronic communication between health professionals and different levels of health services is still fragmented and deficient. This entails a risk of poor quality, efficiency and security in the interaction in the health services.
The proportion of time for administration increases; including journal requirements, epicrisis, interaction. This goes beyond time to patient-oriented work. Electronic collaboration schemes work too poorly, especially between the specialist health service and the municipal health service.
We are seeing an increasing division of the health service. There is an increased privatization where more public services are being put out to tender. This can in some cases mean that prices are pushed so low that the quality of the services provided must necessarily be harmed. In recent years, we have also seen an increase in private health insurance that provides access to physiotherapy outside the public health service.
Especially after the collaboration reform was introduced in 2012, we have experienced increased pressure on municipal health and care services as new tasks have been added, at the same time as patients have become worse and competence has not increased correspondingly. Offers in the specialist health service are being reduced, as we have seen in the rehabilitation field, without the offer being built up correspondingly in the municipal health service.
The increased pressure has also meant that priority must be given more strongly to the health service. The severity criterion has taken precedence, which is important for many patients with long-term pain and chronic diseases. For physiotherapists, this means that it must be prioritized harder than desired, and in some cases this can go beyond professional soundness. Physiotherapists experience that they face the priority challenges in everyday life when this must be done to a greater extent at a municipal or national level.
Other challenges that are important for physiotherapists and the health services include:
- An aging population
- A more sedentary population
- Mental health problems, especially among young people
- An obesity epidemic
- Many people live with prolonged pain
- A changed working life with increased digitalisation, efficiency, temporary employment and the boundary between working life and private life is blurred
- Globalization and climate change
Subjects, quality and ethics
Quality and ethics in the practice of the subject are challenged when physiotherapists move into gray areas between physiotherapy and other subject areas. NFF believes it is important for the profession to focus on gray areas in the subject, this challenges the profession's reputation. Physiotherapists experience competition from other health professionals and alternative therapists, physiotherapists must focus on what is physiotherapy and the quality of the service and what it means to be an authorized health professional.
The lack of joint management for all physiotherapists in the municipal health service means that our competence is not utilized well enough in collaboration with other professional groups.
1. Membership in NFF shall be the natural choice for all physiotherapists and physiotherapy students
Website：Norwegian Physiotherapy Association
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