Bright Future For Physiotherapists

KUALA LUMPUR, March 9 (Bernama) -- The future is bright for those who want to pursue a degree in physiotherapy as the country is short of 1,600 qualified physiotherapists to meet current demand, Director-General of Health Tan Sri Dr Mohamed Ismail Merican said Friday.
"The number of qualified physioteraphists is still very very small in Malaysia," he said in his keynote address at the Malaysian Physiotherapy Association (MPA) National Conference here.
He said only 521 out of the 700 posts for physiotherapists created under the Health Ministry since January had been filled.
There are now 600 physiotherapists in the country, mainly trained by the ministry's College of Physiotherapy since its establishment in 1974.
Currently, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia offered diploma and graduate courses and was expected to produce its first graduates this year, he said.
Other institutes of higher learning which offer physiotherapy courses are University Teknologi Mara and two private colleges, Mahsa and Masterskill.
Dr Ismail said the surge in demand for physiotherapists in the country was in tandem with the changes of lifestyle in the country which saw many people suffering cardiovascular diseases and diabetes as well as physical injuries and disabilities due to road and occupational accidents.
The treatment for these patients would not be complete without the assistance of physiotherapists because those who suffered stroke might feel useless and needed the experts to motivate them to undergo therapy so that they could make their lives more meaningful, he said.
He said the ministry was also working on a health information system which would enable the patients and their families to make decisions on their health and treatment.
Touching on the Traditional and Complementary Medicine Bill, he said the bill would be presented to Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek soon and then to the Attorney-General's Chambers.
"We hope to get it ready by early 2008 if possible," he added.