Despite international laws prohibiting torture, this human right crime and violation is still common in today’s world. Torture is used systematically in over 100 countries (Amnesty International 2020a) and approximately one of every four refugees living in Finland has experienced torture (Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare 2019).
Torture is an extremely traumatic experience, which affects not only the life of the victim but the victims’ family, close ones, and entire communities. Torture can cause permanent physical injuries that can lead to many impairments in muscular and skeletal system, in movement and functional ability. Torture victims often suffer from different mental disorders, such as posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, and dissociation. (Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare 2019.) Considering the complex and overall effects of torture, it is important, that health care professionals are able to recognize the symptoms of torture trauma to provide appropriate rehabilitation for torture victims in Finland. The purpose of this thesis was to increase and provide knowledge for physiotherapists on recognizing torture trauma. The thesis consists of two parts: a theoretical report and a practise-based part. The theoretical report includes information on the most common torture methods, physical and mental consequences of torture. The productive part is electronic guide to physiotherapists to recognize the signs of torture trauma in physiotherapy. This thesis was commissioned the Deaconess Foundation’s Centre for Psychotraumatology, and War Trauma Rehabilitation and they will use the guide as educational material. The guide will be published in March 2021.