BY S.I. RAFFLE
I HAVE realized that clever leaders leave no stone unturned in finding the right amount of solution to a given problem. One particular example is the shortage of jobs with specialized knowledge and skills such as Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Speech and Language Therapy, and Physical Therapy. They sought possible elucidation on the effects of the lack of these professions on their aging and vulnerable population. They use outsourcing methods to fill in these essential jobs.
In the United States, for instance, they provide immigrant visas for qualified nurses and therapists to Filipinos. The salaries were even adjusted handsomely to retain them and to add more personnel with the same caliber. And voila, these Filipino healthcare workers are among the most highly paid-professionals in America.
In Canada, they have high demand for highly skilled workers. They used Express Entry, a point-based system to screen and acquire the targeted labor requirements like, for instance, professionals in the sector of technology, healthcare, engineering, construction, and logistics among others. They provide job offers if the local and national labor market cannot provide for that void in manpower. Thus, people around the world such as India, China, and the Philippines are among the top countries with numerous immigrants.
These two countries I mentioned including Australia are perceived to be the traditional routes for immigration to encourage those people who have value and credentials to settle in, work, and contribute to their country’s lack of manpower.
In our country, particularly in Davao City where there is a dire need for therapy services for children with disabilities, they opted to build 70 million pesos of state-of-the-art building. The real problem is not the facilities but the lack of manpower. The shortage of Occupational Therapy is the result of fewer schools that offer this course. This 5-year academic discipline is composed of four years of completing required subjects and one year of internship. It is the same pathway for Physical Therapy professionals. Whereas Speech Therapy is a four-year course. They belong to the Allied Medical field that is traditionally suited for clinics and hospitals traditon. However, with the change of dynamics brought about by the increasing demand for their services, they are hired in schools.
The Davao City Special Needs Intervention Center needs them. There is no doubt about it. But the significant population of special needs in every school in Mindanao needs them too. They are highly needed especially the Occupational Therapists (OTs).
Historically, the Philippines started the OT program at the University of the Philippines in the 1960’s. Right now, there are colleges and universities who are offering it but with hefty tuition fees. There are only a handful of graduates and PRC Board examination passers every year. Considering the shortage of the profession, it is the production of enrollees and graduates that is the problem.
I urge our good Councilor Hon. Antoinette Principe- Castrodes to challenge the educational framework and dig in into the possibilities of enacting a city law on additional courses for associate degrees in Allied Medicine. The Philippine Academy of Occupational Therapists has only a few licensed OTs on its rosters to sustain and manage the millions of students with disabilities. They don’t have enough members to fully address all Davaoeños with special needs. Moreover, OT is a regulated profession, and one has to pass the board exam or be with an OT supervisor before one can practice if he or she is an intern.
Remember, we are not the first ones on this entire planet who are undergoing this kind of setback. As I stated above, the foreign countries’ strategies to address the shortage is to make an alternative too. The United States Public Education is hiring Certified Occupational Therapy Assistants (COTA) and Physical Therapy Assistants (PTA). These professions are also regulated. However, these are associate degree courses. It means that they don’t require four-year courses. It does not require an advanced mechanism. It needs a simple educational structure – offer this course and thousands will enroll because it is in demand. I am not into taking away the licensed OT’s job.
I am not barking up the wrong tree. If that tree is not yielding enough fruits to feed and sustain thousands if not millions of hungry and undernourished citizens, why can’t we try alternative farming? It has proven to be effective in other countries. Why can’t we become the trailblazers for this? I had written the same sentiments on October 9, 2019, entitled Special Care for All. I had a feeling before that the creation of the City’s center for special needs would encounter a shortage of essential services.
I also urge our City Council to legislate a law requiring the Professional Regulations Commission to add to their present list of regulated professions, the Occupational Therapy Technician or Certified OT Assistant. It is indispensable to the Davao City Special Needs Intervention Center and to the whole area of the city. With the national issues surrounding the Republic Act 11650, an act instituting a policy of inclusion and services for learners with disabilities, Davao City has a step forward. We have set an advanced move by creating that specialized building in People’s Park.
Finally, I urge the leaders and administrators of the center to align their perspectives globally but act locally. Beside your center is Kapitan Tomas Monteverde Elementary School. It has SPED programs. Focus on interventions and leave Special Education to our DEPED designated professionals. I advise you to be a Special Education Directorate. This directorate will be the lead agency in promoting the RA 11650. The essence of the law is inclusion, and we are so behind with the Individualized Education Plan (IEP). Simply put, this is the bato of Darna. Globally, IEP is the first and foremost written and legal document for the parents. This is the parents’ hope that their child will receive appropriate education and services. Do not act like a private center, pooling special needs kids without an IEP.
Our city, once again, can be the trailblazer for IEP standardization in Cebuano. Our country’s special education is so dependent on the United States’ approaches. Why can’t we make our own based on our culture, our needs, our resources and our vision? There should be someone looking into the programs. The SPED program, I highly encourage, should consist of a core of consultants, drafting and enacting Davao-based IEP to help our schools. We can’t be a school within a school. We should think differently. What you might be doing is just tutoring. That is not the point. 20 years from now, the IEP template can become the most sought-after document. It will receive numerous awards in the education sector. The IEP in Cebuano customized to our culture can be one of the best legacies we can give to future generations.
In conclusion, I am optimistic that the City Council can see the needs and they should not leave no stone unturned. Occupational Therapy Assistants – associate degree course in our City College, as well as the Individualized Education Plan – in native tongue, culturally sensitive legal document, are the core needs in response to Davao City Special Needs Intervention Center programs as well as to embrace the remarkable provisions that are stated in RA 11650 which was signed by our then-President Rodrigo Roa Duterte. We are a city of visions. We are trailblazers. Please make this work.
