ExCHANGE - Singapore Physiotherapy Association

Singapore Physiotherapy Association
ExCHANGE
A Quarterly Newsletter that shares the happenings and the works
of the Singapore Physiotherapy Association
September 2013
In this edition
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NewsFLASH: SIP Congress 2014
SpotLIGHT 49th AGM 2013,
MOH Update,
WCPT Updates,
SPSC Retreat,
Welcome: New Members
UpGRADE: Education Listing
NewsBYTE
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Editors Note
Editorial Team of ExCHANGE
Editor: Qamaruzaman Bin Syed Gani
Contributors:
Shirlynn Cai
Derek Tan
Administrator: Helen Tjow
Welcome to another edition of ExCHANGE.
Exciting times are soon approaching.
Singapore International Physiotherapy Congress 2014 is just round the corner and I
hope you have marked the date down on
your calendar. Not only that, its SPA’s 50th
Anniversary and we will be having a Gala
dinner to celebrate as well as static displays
of how the profession has grown over the
years. So look out for email updates and join
us on Facebook if you have yet to do so.
Qamaruzaman
Editor
Council 2012/2014
For all editorial queries and feedback, please email our administrator at
admin@physiotherapy.org.sg
ExCHANGE is a publication by Singapore Physiotherapy Association. The views and opinions expressed or implied in ExCHANGE
do not necessarily reflect those of the Association. Articles may not be reproduced without the editorial team’s permission
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NewsFLASH
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SpotLIGHT: 49th AGM 2013
The 49th Annual General Meeting of
Singapore Physiotherapy Association was
held on 29th May 2013 at Mount Elizabeth
Novena Hospital. There was a tour of the
facilities for those who came earlier lead
by Mr Low Hsien Chih. Dr Siow Hua Ming,
Orthopaedic Surgeon & Medical Director
of Providence Orthopaedics presented
updates on Sport Medicine and Surgical
Treatments.
Mr Dinesh Verma presented the overview
of the President’s Report as mentioned in
the AGM report. He highlighted some of
the key challenges which the council had
been working on from year 2012 to 2013;
among them, the success of Annual
Congress September 2012 as well as an
update on WCPT 2015. He also
emphasized and rallied on having ONE
VOICE for the association.
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Moving forward in 2013 to 2014, SPA will be working on the following events:
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50 Years of Singapore Physiotherapy Association on 1-4 May 2014
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National Congress
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AGM
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WCPT 2015 - Planning and action year 2014
Mr Derek Tan Kim Guan introduced the launch of SPA Online Portal which
allows users to update their profiles online as well as update CPD or create their
e-resume. He also presented on introduction of Associate Membership. Aim was
to incorporate associate membership to the current SPA Constitution and Rules
a tier which has close connection with the profession. 40 members were
supportive of the addition of the new category of Associate Membership for SPA.
SPSC President Rethinam also provided an
update on the Student Council report 2012
which saw them organizing events to encourage participation and promote a sense of
belonging to the professional community
amongst the students. Tokens of appreciation
were provided to the outgoing SPSC Council
members for their hard work.
Proposal to change current Life Members
Admission Criteria was passed with no
objections from members.
For further details , please refer to the 49th
Annual General Meeting minutes.
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SpotLIGHT: MOH UPDATE
Following SPA’s 2012 congress, SPA has taken a step further to review how the
physiotherapy profession can contribute to the healthcare sector in improving
the affordability and accessibility of allied health services to the public. In
February 2013, the Singapore Physiotherapy Association (SPA) was honoured
and privileged to receive an invitation from the health minister for a tea session.
The tea session was well attended by Minister Gan, several representatives
from the Ministry of Health (MOH) as well as our profession’s colleagues from
the public, private and community practice. The tea session saw a productive
discussion on the issues such as direct referral access to allied health services
and the affordability of allied health services, the current needs of the community
sector as well as the obstacles that are present to allow the public in accessing
the basic healthcare needs. It was encouraging to hear of Minister Gan’s
support and commitment in empowering the community sector as well reducing
health care costs and waiting time for accessing the services. The meeting
ended on a positive note and SPA looks forward to working with MOH in bringing
affordable healthcare to our people.
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SpotLIGHT: WCPT UPDATES
The WCPT Congress in 2015 in Singapore may still seem a while away, but the
recent WCPT Asia Western Pacific regional conference in Taiwan was an
excellent example of all that is exciting and invigorating about the gathering of
physiotherapists from all over the world. The spotlight will be on Singapore in
2015 but for now we turn it on Taiwan and share experiences from there.
A total of 1,019 delegates from 32 countries gathered in Taichung, Taiwan, at the
beginning of this month for the sixth regional congress. The event, hosted by the
Taiwan Physical Therapy Association (TPTA), included workshops, symposia,
scientific presentations – and spectacular celebrations of World Physical
Therapy Day on 8th September.
One participant, Kanda Chaiponyo from Thailand, said she was deeply
impressed by the participation of physical therapists from so many countries –
not just from the Asia Western Pacific region, but also from the Africa and North
America Caribbean regions.
“The feeling of being one among a thousand physical therapists was so
memorable,” she said. “Another great thing was the research presented by
physical therapy students – it really assured that the profession is growing
based on evidence. We all can see our profession moving forward together.”
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The congress, incorporating the 12th International Congress of the Asian
Confederation for Physical Therapy (ACPT), was entitled “Health promotion
through physical therapy” and focused on exchanging experiences and
knowledge, facilitating ideas and finding solutions.
The scientific sessions attracted a large number of participants. Important issues
under discussion included reforms to entry level physical therapy education in
the region (a session chaired by WCPT President Professor Marilyn Moffat and
the TPTA President Suh-Fang Jeng) and the influence of WCPT’s international
policies on the profession and global health (chaired by the WCPT’s Africa
Region representative Joyce Mothabeng).
“A remarkable feature of this year’s congress was that a significant amount of
oral and poster presentation were contributed by graduate and undergraduate
PT students as well as by clinical physical therapists,” said Suh-Fang Jeng. “This
may indicate the growth of evidence-based concepts and practice in the
region.”
Suh-Fang Jeng of the TPTA said that this was a significant event for physical
therapists in Taiwan. “Since becoming a full member of WCPT in 1982 Taiwan
physical therapists have often attended WCPT and regional activities, but this is
the first time that physical therapists in Taiwan have felt so close and attached to
WCPT and its regional business.”
“Several generations of PTs in Taiwan worked together to organise the congress
over the past two years, and the experience of international participation has no
doubt had a lasting effect on the younger PTs.”
Brenda Myers, WCPT Secretary General, said the event demonstrated the value
of international physical therapy congresses for the profession and for
individuals. “There is such an appetite for learning and networking in the region,
and this bodes well for the full WCPT Congress, to be held in Singapore in
2015.”
Find out more about the WCPT Congress at www.wcpt.org/congress.
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SpotLIGHT: SPSC RETREAT
The annual Singapore Physiotherapy Student Council (SPSC) Retreat,
organized by the 4th SPSC, was held from 2nd to 4th Sept 2013. It was a good end
off for the seniors, but it also marked the start of council term for the juniors.
The Retreat started off a little slow, having to warm up the 4th and 5th members,
but soon it became a house full of laughter and the start of new friendships!
Do not be fooled though, it wasn’t all fun
and games! We were quick to put our
juniors to the test and have them churn
out their year plan, and proposals for
the events in the coming months. Even
before the Retreat started, we already
had them plan out 2 breakfasts and a
BBQ! To be fair, the 4th SPSC had to
prepare for lunch and dinner too.
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Some of the things we had hoped to achieve out of this retreat were a sense
of belonging and new friendships and it was certainly most rewarding to see
happy faces, even when “working”!
After days of juggling between fun and work, we are happy to have elected a
multi-talented and dedicated group of students into the incoming 5thSPSC!
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After days of juggling between fun and work, we are happy to have elected a
multi-talented and dedicated group of students into the incoming 5thSPSC!
President: Derrick Tan
Vice President: Goh Kai Ying
Secretary: Khuzaimah Binte Zainal
Treasurer: Eric Fernando
Public Relations Head: Naazreen Elias
Public Relations Officer: NurSyathirah
Welfare Head: James Cher
Welfare Officer: Dhachayini Balasubramaniam
There may be more members coming in but nonetheless, the handover process
has already begun!
Special thanks to Vivian and Shirlynn for making their way down on the second
day to provide valuable information about our parent body, the Singapore
Physiotherapy Association. We’re sure that both the 4th and 5th SPSC have a
better direction to head towards to now.
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Before we end this piece off, we’d like to acknowledge and thank the girls of the
4th SPSC who have gone through this journey with us!
Secretary: Kwoh Mun Teng
Treasurer: Wong Yee Lyen
Public Relations Head: Anjelica Goh
Public Relations Officer: Melissa Ong
Public Relations Officer: Cherie Ling
Public Relations Officer: Vivian Lim
Welfare Head: Goh Jia Qian
Welfare Officer: Chan Jia Ying
Welfare Officer: Liew Yee Ching
Welfare Officer: Lee Yan Rong
Sincerely,
Masayu Afiqah & Jolene Tan
President & Vice President
4th SPSC
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WELCOME TO THE SPA FAMILY
(March - September 2013)
New Ordinary Members
New Student Members
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Regina Seah
Gracelina Koh
Karuppasamy Sambathkumar
Anthony Liu
Magdalene Teng
Cesar Seguban
Shikha Pandey
Ran Wang
Tong Shuk In
Esmath Khan Shahul Hameed
Brinda Ganesan
Jaseema Furvin Tajudeen
Nazish Ghani
Suveda Kothari
Jyoti Bora
Kamalika Bhattachary
Srikantha Babu Venga
Anna Elizabeth Garden
Anisha Kak
Ting Leling
Kathryn Sheridan
Wong Jiayen
Shern Ario Lim
Vivian Lim
Wong Yee Lyen
Masayu Afiqah Masagoes Hashim
Jolene Tan Jin Wen
Anjelica Goh
Lee Yan Rong
Caleb Low
Chan Jia Ying
Melissa Ong Jia Min
Liew Yee Ching
Goh Jia Qian
Melissa Chan Wen Yi
Eric Fernando
Dhachayini Balasubramaniam
Abigail Chan Hsin Yi
Goh Kai Ying
James Cher
Khuzaimah Zainal
Chan Sze Li
Nur Syathirah Binte Sunaryo
Naazreen Elias
Derrick Tan
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UpGRADE: Education Listing
The following are talks for the upcoming months;
Dates
Course Title
Speaker
23rd October 2013
Updates in the Management of Knee
OA & Cartilage Injuries
Dr Kevin Lee Boon Leng
TBC
Manual Therapy Workshop - Level 2
Mr Er Beng Siong &
Mr Lim Hun Teck
20th November 2013
Physiotherapy and Restrictive Lung
Disorders
Dr Ong Hwee Kuan
So look out for details on registration or you can drop us an email at
education@physiotherapy.org.sg or call 97957535 for further details
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NewsBYTE
SPA was invited to participate Project SilverCare 2013 once more. This time round,
the event was held at Geylang Serai Community Centre on 15th and 29th
September 2013. Project SilverCare is a community integrative health screening
that brings together nursing, medicine, pharmacy and social work students from
National University of Singapore (NUS) to plan and execute a public health
screening project.
Upcoming will be Public Health Screening 2013,
held annually at Toa Payoh HDB Hub. Public
Health Screening (PHS) is an annual event
organised by the NUS Medical Society which
aims to raise health awareness amongst
Singapore's public. If you’re keen to be a
volunteer, the following are the details;
Date: 5th, 6th October 2013
Time: 0800 - 1700 hours
Venue: Toa Payoh HDB Hub
Please email SPA at admin@physiotherapy.org.sg
should you be keen to volunteer:
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