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Order of Physiotherapists marks International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction

On the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction, marked on 13 October, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction emphasises the importance of "Financing resilience, not disasters", stressing the urgent need to invest in risk prevention and mitigation to avoid human, social and economic losses in the future. In this context, the Order of Physiotherapists emphasises the role of physiotherapy in the humanitarian response and in the recovery of affected populations.

In a world increasingly vulnerable to extreme phenomena, investing in prevention, planning and professional training means investing in lives. The United Nations' "Global Assessment Report on Disaster Risk Reduction 2025" estimates that the direct annual costs of disasters exceed 202 billion dollars, but that the real impact could amount to 2.3 billion dollars a year - a figure eleven times higher than that officially recorded.

Despite the magnitude of these figures, investment in disaster risk reduction (DRR) remains insufficient, both in national budgets and in international assistance. The United Nations is therefore calling for a paradigm shift: finance resilience today to avoid paying for disasters tomorrow.

Physiotherapy, as a health science centred on movement and functional recovery, has a decisive role to play in building societies that are more resilient, inclusive and prepared to face the unexpected.

In addition to clinical intervention, physiotherapy contributes to community resilience by supporting multidisciplinary teams in disaster preparedness and response plans, ensuring that healthcare and rehabilitation remain accessible and sustainable, even in crisis contexts.

As the Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, emphasised, "resilience must be rooted in the foundations of development", a message that takes on particular relevance in a global context of climate emergency and inequality of resources.

Promoting resilience starts with small gestures of preparation. That's why the Order of Physiotherapists shares the information leaflet "Physiotherapy in Emergency Settings"with simple guidelines to reinforce the safety and autonomy of families in critical situations.

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Pedro Maciel Barbosa

Specialist physiotherapist at the Matosinhos Local Health Unit Sub-coordinator for Primary Health Care, Matosinhos Local Health Unit Visiting Assistant Professor at the Porto School of Health Member of the Board of Directors of the Foundation for Health - SNS Member of the General Council of the Order of Physiotherapists

Carlos Sand

Carlos Areia has been a physiotherapist since 2013, and has worked in various hospitals, clinics and clubs in both Portugal and the UK. He began his academic career at Oxford University in 2016, where he led a clinical trial comparing physiotherapy vs surgery in anterior cruciate injuries in 32 hospitals in England. In 2018 she moved to the neurosciences department, where she developed her own studies on remote monitoring of vital signs, which were implemented during the pandemic. Here he discovered his passion for data, and in 2022, he joined Digital Science as a Data Scientist. He completed his PhD earlier this year, and has more than 60 publications in journals such as The Lancet, BMJ, Cochrane, among others. He is also an honorary lecturer at Oxford Brookes University and a consultant in clinical research.

Eduardo José Brazete Carvalho Cruz

PhD in Physiotherapy from the University of Brighton, UK. Post-Doctorate in Epidemiology from the National School of Public Health at the New University of Lisbon.
Coordinator of the Studies and Planning Office of the Order of Physiotherapists. Coordinating Professor of the Physiotherapy Department of the School of Health of the Polytechnic Institute of Setúbal (ESS-IPS). President of the ESS-IPS Technical-Scientific Council. Coordinator of the Physiotherapy Department at ESS-IPS. Integrated Researcher at the Comprehensive Health Research Centre (CHRC) (a partnership between FCM-UNL, the National School of Public Health, the University of Évora, the Lisbon Institute of Global Mental Health and Santo Espírito Hospital, Terceira Island, Azores).

Sara Souto Miranda

Sara Souto Miranda has a bachelor's and master's degree in physiotherapy from the University of Aveiro, and a postgraduate qualification in adult respiratory physiotherapy from the same institution. In 2023 she completed her double doctorate in Rehabilitation Sciences/Health, Medicine and Life Sciences at the Universities of Aveiro and Maastricht (Netherlands) and is currently working as a technical-scientific advisor to the Studies and Planning Office (GEP) of the Order of Physiotherapists, and as a guest lecturer at the Piaget Institute in Vila Nova de Gaia. As a member of the Respiratory Research and Rehabilitation Laboratory at the University of Aveiro (Lab3R), she has carried out applied research in which she has assessed and treated patients with respiratory pathology, having taken part in 6 research projects. Throughout her career she has published 19 scientific articles in international peer-reviewed journals with an impact factor, 1 book chapter and more than 50 abstracts in conference proceedings. She was a research volunteer at the Ciro rehabilitation centre (Centre for expertise in chronic organ failure) in the Netherlands, and is currently a member of the Guideline Methodology Network of European Respiratory Society. She was honoured by European Lung Foundation e European Respiratory Society for carrying out patient-centred research, by the Directorate General for Higher Education with a merit grant for his master's degree, and by the Ciro Centre with a grant to support research abroad.

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