| | From the President and Secretary General WCPT is about uniting physical therapists from around the world to share knowledge and advance the profession in the interests of improving global health. Whenever we come together at a regional or international event there is a buzz and an energy that reinforces the value of international collaboration. While WCPT's interests are international, its physical home is London and at the moment we are feeling the buzz and energy that an international event of a different kind can generate. The Olympics and Paralympic Games, and the many cultural events held beside them, are transforming our home for a few weeks. We are feeling inspired and hope that whether you are a fan of sport or not, you too are able to celebrate and enjoy the spirit of friendship, competition and cooperation surrounding this international occasion. Kind regards
Marilyn Moffat and Brenda J Myers If you would like to use all or part of this e-letter for your own newsletters/websites then please feel free. We need your assistance to reach the profession around the world, so please send this e-update to your members. Are you a physical therapist working with or interest in working with people with pain related issues? WCPT has set up a new international network for physical therapists interested in pain. Membership of this network is free and is open to all physical therapists working with pain related issues who belong to a WCPT member organisation. You can apply for membership by sending an email with your name, country, WCPT member organisation you belong to, professional background and field of expertise to martin.hey@midyorks.nhs.uk. Through your membership you will be linked with colleagues who share the same background and interests, both in your own country and internationally. The network sees collaborative networking with like-minded, credible and appropriate professional and multi-professional organisations as vital for the development of better pain understanding worldwide. Find out more about the WCPT Physical Therapy Pain Network at www.wcpt.org/ptp. To read about other WCPT networks go to www.wcpt.org/networks. Profiling physical therapy around the world As part of WCPT's goal to profile the profession around the world, a collection of key pieces of information from WCPT member organisations has now been completed for the year 2011. Country profiles for those organisations that have completed their entries are available on individual member organisation pages www.wcpt.org/members. A report will be published later this year highlighting key findings on the profession globally, including: - regulation of the profession
- entry level education requirements
- population to physical therapist ratios
- representation of specialist interest groups
World Physical Therapy Day Have you started planning your activities for World Physical Therapy Day? With just over two months to go until 8th September, if you haven't yet had the opportunity to see WCPT's new materials for 2012 go to www.wcpt.org/wptday-toolkit. Included for the first time this year are ready-to-print posters and flyers aimed at the public, a booklet with clinical resources for physical therapists, along with a booklet with all the information you need to put together your own events as well as details about the Movement for Health theme and this year's campaign message: Fit for life. If you are from a Spanish-speaking country, this month we have also added Spanish editions* of all the posters at www.wcpt.org/wptday-posters-spanish. * The posters have been translated with permission by OMT Venezuela. Journal article on physical activity WCPT partners with new CPD provider As part of WCPT's commitment to offer a broad range of continuing professional development (CPD) opportunities, WCPT has recently partnered with a new online education provider. 
MedBridge Education provides high quality video-based online continuing education taught by industry experts in a convenient, easy-to-use format. Their courses are designed to improve clinical reasoning, skill-sets and patient outcomes giving you the opportunity to enhance your competitive edge and improve patient outcomes. MedBridge instructors include Laurie Hartman, Chad Cook, Eyal Lederman and other industry-leading experts. To celebrate this partnership MedBridge Education is offering members of WCPT member organisations 25% off a subscription throughout August. For less than the cost of a one-day seminar, you can receive unlimited access to a growing library of educational courses, communicate directly with instructors, and access its comprehensive evidence-based library of tests and assessments. All purchases support WCPT and your professional development. For further information go to www.medbridgeeducation.com/wcpt and enter promo code: WCPTAUGUST. Earlier this week the UK government announced that physiotherapists in the UK will be able to prescribe medicines independently. This is a worldwide first and a decision welcomed by the WCPT member organisation, the Chartered Society of Physical Therapy (CSP), which has campaigned on this issue for the past 10 years. This extension to the role of UK physiotherapists, once suitably trained, allows them to prescribe any licensed medicine without a doctor authorising their decision. Speaking on behalf of the CSP, Natalie Beswetherick, Director of Practice and Development, said: "This is a momentous decision that will impact on the profession for decades to come". Read more at www.csp.org.uk/news/2012/07/23/landmark-decision-gives-uk-physios-world-first-prescribing-rights. WHO wheelchair training service In partnership with United States Agency for International Development (USAID), WHO has developed a Wheelchair service training package: basic level. Its main purpose is to develop the minimum skills and knowledge required by personnel involved in wheelchair service delivery. As one of the most common assistive devices, it is estimated that 70 million people require wheelchairs worldwide, yet only 5-15% of people have access. This training package has been developed to support health and rehabilitation professionals in ensuring that people with disabilities get a quality wheelchair. For further details go to www.who.int/disabilities/en/. At last month's Africa Region congress, the following people were awarded for their outstanding service to the region: - Ina Diener (South Africa): supporting CPD in the region (running OMT workshops and courses)
- Aimee Stewart (South Africa): supporting the development of new physical therapy education programmes in the region
- Emmanuel B John (Nigeria (USA)): IT support to the region and regional webmaster
- Zola Dantile (South Africa): the second African to be WCPT Vice President
- Dorcas Madzivire (Zimbabwe): the first African to be WCPT Vice President
- Alfred Otienno (Kenya): the first WCPT regional representative who spearheaded the first regional congress
- George Chigali (Zambia): who co-ordinated the very first regional meeting
- Rozen Botokro (Togo): supporting physical therapy association in French speaking countries' involvement in WCPT and WCPT Africa Region
The WCPT Executive Committee and Secretariat would like to offer their sincere congratulations to all of the above individuals and a thank you for the enormous contribution they have made to the profession in the Africa Region. The WHO Global Health Workforce Alliance (GHWA) has recently published its annual report "Enabling solutions, ensuring healthcare" which is available for download at www.who.int/workforcealliance/knowledge/resources/annualreport2011/en/index.html The report details the achievements and experiences of the Alliance in 2011. The accomplishments illustrate the many contributions and value added by the Alliance over the past years, and are intrinsically linked to the contributions of more than 300 member and partner organisations that constitute the global network of the Alliance. WCPT South America Region: to view registration fees and the preliminary programme for the South America Region Congress go to http://wcptsar2012.jimdo.com/. The congress will take place in Margarita Island, Venezuela 5th - 8th September 2012. IFOMPT Conference 2012: the International Federation of Orthopaedic Manipulative Physical Therapists (IFOMPT) Congress is to be held in Quebec City, Canada from 30th September - 5th October 2012. To register now or view the full programme go to www.ifomptconference.org. WCPT European Region: find out about the "Knowledge bag on holiday" photo competition recently launched around the Physiotherapy Education Congress 2012. The congress will be held in Vienna, Austria 8th - 9th November 2012. http://congress2012.physioaustria.at. WCPT AWP Region: the Fifth Asia Western Pacific Regional Congress will be held in Taichung, Taiwan, 6th - 9th September 2013. Please email wcpt.awp@physiotherapy.asn.au for further details. INFORMATIONIf you are unable to access our website using the links within this email, you may need to copy and paste the hyperlinks directly into your internet browser. If you have problems reading this email please follow the link below for help. www.wcpt.org/eupdate | | | |
