More physios needed

Star: KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia requires over 19,000 physiotherapists by 2020 to be on par with other developed countries.
Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Dr Fong Chan Onn said that as of December last year, Malaysia had 607 trained physiotherapists registered with the Malaysian Physiotherapist Association.
“In Malaysia, the field is relatively new and the problem of shortage of staff is a big one.
“With 450 in the public sector and another 157 in the private sector, there is a huge shortage,” he said when launching the Masterskill McMillan Physiotherapy Centre here yesterday.
Fong said most of the physiotherapists in the country were trained in countries like Britain, Australia, India and New Zealand.
“The role taken by Masterskill College of Nursing and Health is commendable and ought to be complimented, as it would ensure that our country would produce sufficient health workers, including physiotherapists,” he said.
“This is a very wide field where you can specialise in different areas like sports, women’s health and paediatrics,” he added.