Physiotherapy Opens Doors To Attractive Career Opportunities In Allied Health Sector In India

Physiotherapy (PT), today offers numerous and attractive career opportunities in the allied healthcare sector in India. A physiotherapy professional may choose to become a practitioner or academician and researcher, as per his/her aptitude and interest and be an integral part of the Public Health mechanism.

What is Physiotherapy?

As per Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, UK, it is a degree-based healthcare profession. Physios use their knowledge and skills to improve a range of conditions associated with different systems of the body, such as neurological (stroke, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s), neuromusculoskeletal (back pain, whiplash-associated disorder, sports injuries, arthritis), cardiovascular (chronic heart disease, rehabilitation after heart attack), respiratory (asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cystic fibrosis) etc.

Utility of Physiotherapy

Physiotherapy, also known as physical therapy, helps to treat orthopaedic, neurological, and cardiopulmonary disease conditions. This health science treats patients from all age groups like infants, children, adults, and geriatric population for their respective conditions.

This health science uses the method of massage, heat therapy, electrotherapy, hydrotherapy, patient education, and advice to treat injuries, ailments or deformities. Thus, in today’s modern healthcare scenario, physiotherapy plays an important role in treating the affected, while focusing on prevention and rehabilitation.

Education, training and exposure play a major role in crafting a successful career in physiotherapy. So, looking into the current day demand, AIPH University Bhubaneswar, the first and only public health university in eastern India has designed a set of programs in physiotherapy covering UG, PG, Integrated and PhD courses.

“Owing to the major collaboration with institutes of national repute, students get exposure to the best academic and clinical knowledge at AIPH University. Looking at the growing demand for the profession, the department of physiotherapy has the best faculty and well-equipped lab facilities. This helps to train the young emerging physios both in-campus & out-campus. Time to time camps & awareness programs are also organized as part of community outreach”, says Dean, School of Allied Health Sciences, AIPH University Bhubaneswar, Dr Arjit Mohapatra.

“Besides, AIPH University Bhubaneswar has tied up with different multi-speciality hospitals, for hands-on exposure and experience to the students,” he added.

Career in Physiotherapy

A career in physiotherapy offers a challenging and interesting job profile in the healthcare industry. As a physiotherapist, you can specialise in the fields such as geriatrics, cardiorespiratory, orthopaedics & neurology. One can also opt for further research and get a doctorate degree to pursue a career in academics and research.

There is a wide scope of physiotherapy as a career option in India as well as abroad. Job opportunities in this promising sector are galore. The number of practising physiotherapists in the country has grown by over 23 per cent between 2012 and 2021.

Accoridng to the Indian Association of Physiotherapy, India has only 0.59 practising physiotherapists per 10,000 population. But the WHO norm mandated at least 1 physiotherapist per 10,000 citizens.  Hence, it is evident that there is a great need and scope for physiotherapists in India.

Going by the population of the country (1.4bn), the requirement for physiotherapists is estimated at over 1.4 lakh.

Where To Study?

If you want to pursue a career in physiotherapy and are willing to work with a clinic or hospital or individual practice, it is time to pursue a physiotherapy course from a reputed university.

Candidates may go for admission to the Bachelor in Physiotherapy (BPT), Master in Physiotherapy (MPT) or Integrated Master in Physiotherapy (IMPT) and Diploma courses depending upon their academic qualification and career plan.

Asian Institute of Public Health (AIPH) University in Bhubaneswar, a prestigious and high pedigree university, with its city campus in the vicinity of Smart City Bhubaneswar, offers various programs on Physiotherapy.

The Master in Physiotherapy (MPT), a flagship program by AIPH University Bhubaneswar, offers specialization in Cardio-Pulmonary, Neurology, Orthopedics, Sports Medicine, Manual Therapy, Geriatric Medicine, Movement Science, Rehab Science, Pediatrics, Obstetrics & Gynecology, etc. AIPHU Bhubaneswar has adopted a combined model of classroom teaching, lab and field practice that helps groom future professionals in the sector.

AIPH University Bhubaneswar, created under Odisha State Legislature, has four schools namely Public Health, Health Management, Biological Sciences and Allied Health Sciences. The university focuses on quality classroom teaching, modern labs including a state-of-the-art BSL-3 mobile laboratory, hospital tie-ups, community connect and international collaborations, building the future public health professionals.

The university is a pioneer in the state in adopting National Education Policy, NEP 2020.