ADDIS ABABA – Ethiopian Ministry of Health by using Ethiopian Hospital Services Transformation Guidelines (EHSTG) expressed commitment to provide the rehabilitation service and prepared physical rehabilitation service guidelines.
Ermias Mulatu Federal Ministry of Health of Ethiopia (FMoH) clinical service director specialty service team leader told The Ethiopian Herald that, physical rehabilitation is one part of the rehabilitation service which aims at enabling people to reach and maintain their optimal physical function.
According to World Health Organization (WHO) disability report shows that in 2011 nearly 15 percent of world population has different types of disability, 80 percent of which live in developing countries. In our country it is estimated that 32 percent of this pollution needs physical rehabilitation service, Ermias noted.
On the other hand, when it comes to manpower, experts in the sector are rendering the rehabilitation service at different levels in the health sector but to make the team multidisciplinary and effective, different levels of training for other rehabilitation professionals were needed.
He further stated that it is also worthy to mention that rehabilitation service is integrated in Ethiopia’s specialty and subspecialty service roadmap so its future development and expansion will get due attention. In addition to physical rehabilitation, professionals to provide full medical rehabilitation other professionals like are also needed, added the director.
Dr. Biruk G/egziabher, Lecturer at St. Paul’s Hospital Millennium Medical College for his part said that, the physiotherapy profession in our country is relatively new when compared to the history of the profession in other countries. The early aim of physiotherapy is to address the rehabilitation need resulting from different problems may be due to war or epidemic disease.
Today physiotherapists manage patients with a broad-array of health conditions and practices in many different settings, including hospitals, CBR centers, private clinic, and specialized rehabilitation centers.
As to him, the main challenges of the rehabilitation professionals in our country are very limited opportunity for professionals to pursue their career. Also the physical rehabilitation departments lack equipment for provision of basic services. Because of the above factors, the quality of the service delivered for the wider community is unsatisfactory.
The other core challenge is the Ministry of Health rehabilitation department is lack of a proper organization to coach and provide technical support for professionals at state health bureaus and health facilities.
The access and quality of medical rehabilitation service should go parallel with the country’s service demand and with the vision of the ministry of health. So, to go in line with that the ministry of health and ministry of education should establish partnership with international faculties to produce adequate rehabilitation professionals for the country he stressed.
In addition international humanitarian organizations working in the field of rehabilitation in the country, beyond their role and assistance in the time of conflict and emergency situations, they should come up with a plan to engage on development activities as well.
The Ethiopian Herald, Sunday Edition, June 2/2019
BY AMBO MEKASA
