5 reasons why citizens are reluctant to specialize in physical therapy

The Physiotherapy Division of the Emirates Medical Association reported that the number of Emirati physiotherapists in the country is 65, noting that there are five main reasons behind citizens’ reluctance to specialize in the field of physiotherapy.

The head of the division and head of the Emirates Physiotherapy Conference, Amal Al Shamlan, said that the number of citizens working in this specialty is very small compared to the total number of physiotherapists in the country, explaining that citizens constitute approximately 4% of the number of specialists in the country, which is 1,500 specialists.

She stated that the 5th Emirates Physiotherapy Conference “Viso Dubai 2016”, scheduled to be held on May 19 and 20, will discuss the reasons for citizens’ reluctance to specialize in the field of physiotherapy.

Al-Shamlan pointed out that the Physiotherapy Division of the Emirates Medical Association conducted a field study on the reasons for this reluctance, and the results of the study indicated that there are five main reasons behind citizens’ reluctance to specialize in physiotherapy: The first of these reasons is that physiotherapy is one of the modern specialties in the country, explaining that the first program to graduate a physiotherapist began at the University of Sharjah, and the first batch graduated in 2003.

She explained that there are two other programs for teaching physical therapy, at the Gulf Medical College in Ajman, and Fatima College of Health Sciences, which will graduate its first batch soon, in addition to “a few citizens who are on scholarships outside the country studying physical therapy.”

Al-Shamlan added that the second reason for the weak demand for the specialty, especially among males, is the lack of awareness of the nature of this profession and the importance of this specialty as a basic element of integrated health care.

She added, “The third reason is the state’s lack of educational programs for rehabilitation specialties, such as occupational therapy and speech therapy, which leads to a decrease in the number of graduates.”

The fourth reason monitored by the Physical Therapy Division is the lack of job offers for this category in government institutions, and the fifth reason is that physical therapy specialists suffer from low salaries and job benefits compared to other medical specialties.

She pointed out that the country needs one physical therapist for every 2,500 people, according to statistical studies conducted in Australia in 2009, which show the extent of the need for physical therapists compared to the population.

Al-Shamlan said that the state needs to have several elements that contribute to increasing the number of physiotherapists among citizens, foremost among which is the care of government health institutions for a number of citizen students to qualify them in this specialty, and to ensure the availability of job opportunities in these institutions.

She added that localization plans must be activated and career paths must be developed that encourage engagement in this profession, while providing strong salaries and job benefits that attract male and female citizens to work in this field, similar to other specialized professional fields.

The Head of the Physiotherapy Department called for activating high-level academic educational programs that guarantee educational outcomes that keep pace with development and the global level of practicing the profession, adding, “Higher educational institutions must sponsor citizens who specialize in the field to obtain higher degrees so that they form an academic base that undertakes the task of educating future generations and contributes to supporting the field of scientific research related to this specialty in a way that meets the needs of the state.”