Dr Raija Kuisma

Principal Lecturer

contact:
Health Professions
Darley Road
Eastbourne
BN20 7UR

Telephone: +44 (0)1273 644198

Email: R.M.E.Kuisma@brighton.ac.uk

Roles

• Course leader, admissions tutor, dissertation tutor – Rehabilitation Science MSc
• Coordinator of international activities of the school

Teaching

• Rehabilitation Science (Physiotherapy) MSc
• Physiotherapy BSc(Hons)
• Physiotherapy MSc
• Professional doctorate

Research interests

• assessment of students' learning; peer-, self-and portfolio assessment
• problem-based learning
• aquatic activities in rehabilitation and health
• community rehabilitation
• activities for fitness and health for older people

Current projects

• Activities of older people, activity buddy project
• Exercises and dementia in older people
• Effects of Nordic Walking in health and fitness
• Balance, gait and falls in older people
• Students' experiences in the problem-based programme

Profile

Raija completed her physiotherapy education including postgraduate diploma in community physiotherapy and physiotherapy teaching diploma in Finland where she also worked as a clinical physiotherapist and physiotherapy teacher.

She has worked as a clinician in Sweden, Norway, London and Bath in the UK and Saudi Arabia before her last posting in Hong Kong, where she was an assistant professor in physiotherapy before joining the School of Health Professions in 2003. Raija is a visiting professor at the Hai Duong Medical Technical University in Vietnam and at the Jinhua University in China and also rehabilitation consultant at the Affiliated Jinhua Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital in China.

Raija's main teaching duties are in the Rehabilitation Science MSc course, which follows a problem-based learning curriculum, and she is also involved in the postgraduate MSc and doctorate programmes.

Raija is the coordinator of international activities in the school involved in Erasmus exchanges, international student support and recruitment of international students for all the programmes. Raija was elected as the president of the European Network of Physiotherapy in Higher Education (ENPHE) in 2009 and re-elected in 2011. In this capacity she is involved in collaborating with European physiotherapy educators in projects aiming to improve the transparency and mobility of physiotherapy education in Europe.

Raija's research interest is focused on the activities of older people, in view of promoting active ageing and she is supervising undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral students in these areas. She is also interested in assessment of students' learning especially in relation to problem-based learning, exercise prescription and physical activities and exercise as health promotion.

Additional roles

• Currently external examiner for physiotherapy programmes; University of Teesside, Cardiff University, Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland and University of Malta (-2012)
• Reader, National Teaching Fellowship Scheme, The Higher Education Academy.
• Reviewer for Clinical Rehabilitation Journal, Physiotherapy Journal of Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, Manual Therapy Journal, Journal of Aging and Physical Activity, The American Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.
• International Scientific Committee (ISC) of WCPT, World Physical Therapy 2007 and 2011.
• CSP visitor for programme approvals and annual quality reviewer of programmes.
• Raija is also involved in several committees in the School of Health Professions, Faculty of Health and Social Science, and the university.

Publications

Rawson E, Kuisma R. Krouwel, O, Ryan SJ, Garikipati K, (2012) Effects of aquatic physiotherapy on patients with Multiple Sclerosis: Balance and fatigue, (under revision)

Baz B, Kuisma R. (2012) Interprofessional collaboration between family practitioners and physiotherapists in primary health care: implications for interprofessional education. (under revision for Journal of Interprofessional Care)

Kyle H, Kuisma R. (2012) The Expectations and Experiences of Overseas Trained Physiotherapists Working in the United Kingdom National Health Service

Rose A. Birch I. Kuisma R. (2011) Effect of motion control running shoes compared with neutral shoes on tibial rotation during running. Physiotherapy. 97:250-255. Elsevier.

Cuesta-Vargas A. Garcia-Romero J C. Kuisma R. (2009) Maximum and Resting Heart Rate in Treadmill and Deep-Water Running in Male International Volleyball Players. International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education, 2009, 3, 398-405. © 2009 Human Kinetics, Inc.

Bryant L. Carter A. Cox S. Heath D. Jackson A. Moore A. Kuisma R. Pattman J. and Ryan S-J. (2009) The HyDAT Project: UK Aquatic Physiotherapy Data Collection. London: Chartered Society of Physiotherapy.

Berry J. Kuisma R. (2009) The Perceptions of 3rd Year Physiotherapy Students about Amputee Rehabilitation. BACPAR, British Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Amputee Rehabilitation Newsletter. Autumn Issue No.31. Pp. 12-18.

Kuisma, R. (2007) Portfolio Assessment of Undergraduate Group Project. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 32 ( 5), 557-569.

Bryant EC, Trew ME, Bruce AM, Kuisma RME, Smith AW (2005) Effect of retirement and change in activity on levels of lower limb muscle strength. Journal of Sports Science. 23 (2): 221-222 (Abstract)

Bryant EC, Trew ME, Bruce AM, Kuisma, RME and Smith AW (2005) Gender differences in balance performance at the time of retirement. Clinical Biomechanics. 20 (3), 330-335.

Bryant EC, Trew ME, Bruce AM, Kuisma RME and Smith AW (2004) Lower limb muscle strength and activity levels in people approaching retirement. J Aging & Physical Activity. 12 (3); 312-313.

Kuisma, R. (2002) Domiciliary physiotherapy outcomes: A comparison of outcomes of home versus institutional rehabilitation of patients with hip fracture. Clinical Rehabilitation. 16:553-561

Kuisma, R. (1999) Criteria referenced marking of written assignments. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 24, 27-39.

Publications from the institutional repository