AAPT Final Report
AAPT EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE FINAL REPORT 2008
Submitted by the AAPT Executive Committee, 2008
Presented at the AAPT General Assembly, November 29th, PTI
Introduction
The main aim for AAPT for 2008 was to revise the structure and make sure that there is a strong base for the association to then build on. The structure has been adapted and clarified, the central core has been strengthened, and various support documents have been made to make the work easier in the future. Along with this, various other activities have been maintained, such as Continuing Education (CE) courses, meetings with stakeholders and ministries, awareness raising for medical doctors and general advocacy for the profession.
Executive and Administrative Committee meetings
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETINGS
ECM
Date & place
Number of participants
1
1st January, AAPT Office
15 EC members
2
6th March, PARSA
14 EC members + AAPT Advisor
3
1st May, AABRAR
15 EC members + AAPT Advisor
4
31st July, KOO
14 EC members + AAPT Advisor
5
6th October, ICRC
11 EC members + AAPT Advisor
Minutes from the meetings are available in the AAPT office.
ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE MEETINGS
Administrative Committee meetings were held in the AAPT Office in WAK on the following dates: 5th January, 22nd March, 29th March, 20th April, 19th May, 2nd July, 28th July, 27th August, 1st September, 27th September
The AC meetings focusing on following up issues between Executive Committee meetings.
Membership status
Number of members 2008: 99 PTs, 24 PTAs, 8 PT helpers.
TOTAL 131 members
In 2007 there were 140 members, so there have been a loss of 9 members. The reason for this was that there was not good organization for following up payment of old members, and the regional committees were not functioning well and were not able to follow up on their members.
This will be an important issue to address for the next mandate period, and plans have been presented in the work plan for 2009-2010 to make the whole process more organized.
Re-structuring of AAPT
One of the main aims of 2008 was to improve the basic structure of AAPT, so that there is a stronger base on which to build future activities. Various things have been done in this regard:
AAPT ARTICLES
The previous Articles for AAPT have been revised and adapted to better suit the Afghan physiotherapy context. They have been clarified to provide a structure and guidelines for how the AAPT should be set up and run. The Articles have been checked by representatives for the Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA). If passed by the General Assembly they will be endorsed by the AAPT.
CODE OF CONDUCT
The process of revising the Code of Conduct has been started, but it was deemed premature to finalise this, since it requires more input from Afghan physiotherapists, and ethics is still a new topic. This document is therefore presented as a working document to be further developed and finalised by the Executive Committee during 2009-10.
JOB-DESCRIPTIONS FOR EXECUTIVE & ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEE BOARD MEMBERS
Job descriptions have been made for the President, Vice-president, Secretary, Treasurer and Executive Committee Members of the Board, as well as for a Publishing and Information Officer and a Continuing Education Officer.
A job description has also been made for a part-time position of a Translator/administrative Officer for AAPT. The proposal is that this position be shared with PTI.
QUICK REFERENCE GUIDES
To provide some guidelines for the work, quick reference guides were made as a support for carrying out some of the general activities of the AAPT. They provide guidelines and suggestions to help AAPT carry out it's activities fully and in accordance with the AAPT articles.
The following topics are covered: 1 Executive Committee meetings; 2 Magazine; 3 Newsletter; 4 General Assembly; 5 Work-plan and budget; and 6 Annual and financial report.
These are working documents and should be revised as more knowledge is gained within AAPT. Also, more such documents can be made and added to the list as is deemed helpful and necessary.
FINANCIAL GUIDES
Through the help of Ibrahim Akbari (Financial Officer, SGAA), formats will be made for the financial report and budget (see Quick Reference Guides 5 and 6). Forms will be made for a cash receipt voucher and a cash payment voucher, to make the financial documentation better organised.
MEMBERSHIP OF ASIA WESTERN PACIFIC (AWP) REGION OF WCPT
Since 2008 AAPT is a member of the Asia Western Pacific (AWP) region of WCPT.
AAPT REGIONS
The focus of 2008 has been to strengthen the base of AAPT, hence most of the focus has been in Kabul. The interest from the regions in working with AAPT has been small, and yet well-functioning regional committees will be very important in the future of AAPT. Therefore, a key factor to work with in the coming mandate period will be the regions, to encourage and increase the activity on regional levels.
AAPT has split the country into regions based on the distribution of physical therapists and their accessibility. For example, Kabul is only one city, but because of it's large number of physiotherapists, it will be one region. Kandahar has only 6 physical therapists, and surrounding provinces none, but because they have difficulty traveling to other regions, the South will be one region. In the north there are many physical therapists, so this is split into North-East and North-West.
Central region Kabul (59)
Central-south Loger (5), Wardak (6), Ghazni (4), Khoost (1), Paktia (0)
East Nangarhar (22), Laghman (2), Konar (2)
North-East Kunduz (5), Baghlan (1), Takhar (9), Badakhshan (9)
North-West Mazar (20), Samangan (2), Juzgan (3), Faryab (2)
West Heart (23), Badghes (0), Ghore (0), Farhar (0)
South Kandahar (6), Helmad (0)
One member from each region has to be on the Executive Committee, and this person needs to be chosen at the General Assembly. This person will be responsible for heading the Regional Committees. (NB The information about number of physical therapists is from the MoPH disability report, and there may be more physical therapists working in Afghanistan which are not in this report.)
REFITTING OF AAPT OFFICE
It is important for AAPT to have a good office from which they can work, host meetings and represent AAPT. Hence the office was repainted and necessary equipment purchased.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY
To ensure that the Association follows professional regulations, planning of the General Assembly was an important part of the work in 2008. Information about the assembly was sent in two parts in the newsletters in June and September, to inform members of the process. The structure was revised to ensure that procedures were carried out correctly, and guidelines were made to assist the Executive Committee in their planning.
SUPPORT FROM SCA IN THE RESTRUCTURING PROCESS
The SCA has supported AAPT with a part-time advisor to restructure and strengthen the base of AAPT. The SCA has also provided financial support enabling trainings and new equipment to be purchased, and enabling 4 Executive Committee members to go to Mumbai, India and participate in the AWP/IAP conference end of January 2009.
Continuing Education courses
The following CE courses were held in 2008, organised together with PTI:
Date & location
Topic
Trainer
# Participants
7-8th April, PTI Kabul
Gender workshop
M Ismail Nawabi, SCA
30
26th April, PTI Kabul
DDH
Jeanne Hartley
26
8th May, PTI Kabul
Pain / Geriatrics
Zara Pennicook
28
3rd July, PTI Kabul
Clinical Radiology
Dr Abd Malik & Dr Nike Mohammad
46
20-21st October, PTI Kabul
Reumatology
Mr Manish Samnani, occupational therapist
20
8-10th (female) and 11-13th (male) November, SCA Mazar-e Sharif
Pelvic treatment Part I
Liesbeth Verduyn
(course not done at the time of writing)
22-24th (female) and 25-27th (male) November, PTI Kabul
Pelvic treatment Part I
Liesbeth Verduyn
(course not done at the time of writing)
Advocacy and support for the profession
MEETINGS WITH MINISTRIES
Date & place
Person(s) met
Topic
14th April, MOPH
Vice Minister Dr Kakar
Information about AAPT activities and objectives
15th April, MOPH
Vice president of publishing directory
Better coordination and information about AAPT
23rd April, Olympic Committee
Olympic Committee, Vice president Zia Ahmad Deshti
Coordination and having Physiotherapy position for the Olympic team.
26th April , MOPH
President of Foreign director MOPH
AAPT Registration and information about activities.
18th May, MOLSAMD
Vice Minister
Information about AAPT. Coordination Meeting regarding legal matters for Disability people in Afghanistan.
21st May, Olympic Committee
Mr Deshti, Vice President
Coordination about AAPT and the Olympic committee, creating a post for physical therapist for the Olympic team.
9th June, MOE
Mr Karamkhail , Minister Advisor
Coordination about MOE and AAPT
29th June, MOJ
President of Relative Organize Director
AAPT Registration
MEETINGS WITH STAKEHOLDERS/EMPLOYERS OF PHYSICAL THERAPISTS
Date & place
Person(s) met
Topic
5th January, AAPT office
LEMA
Discussion about website, new logo, brochure, magazine for AAPT
7th January, Kart-a Char
Dr Sajed, AWEC (Counterpart)
Information about AAPT. registration in AWEC
13th January, Asia Foundation
Mr Mostafa
Information about AAPT. Donation of books for AAPT.
13th February, AliAbad Hospital
Vice president Dr Sina
Awareness and information about AAPT
17th April, MDC
Noorulhabib Hasir, MDH Director
Information about AAPT
24th April, AAPT office
Sweda, PT from Germany
Information about AAPT and development of physiotherapy in Afghanistan
19th May, AAPT office
Dr Sajed, AWEC
Registration and support of AAPT
12th June, SCA
Zemarai Saqeb
Technical and financial support for AAPT
23rd August, Jamhureat Hospital
President and Vice-president
Coordination and having a department of physiotherapy in their new building.
WORLD PHYSICAL THERAPY DAY
The 8th of September is the International World Physical Therapy Day. Due to clash with Masood Day, AAPT together with PTI invited physiotherapists and related stakeholders to celebrate this day on the 10th September. The celebration was held in the PTI Gymnasium.
Participants included physical therapists, physical therapy students, medical students and doctors, as well as distinguished representatives from NGOs, Loma Linda and WAK hospital and IHS.
Habiburahman Habib, President of AAPT, opened the ceremony with a speech about the role of physical therapists in clinical practice and how physical therapists can treat obesity, and the role of exercise for people of all ages.
Aziz Ahmad 'Adel', Project Manager of PTI, gave a presentation on the history of physiotherapy in Afghanistan, and how the association was started and developed.
Md. Shaker, physical therapy teacher at PTI gave a presentation on Evidence Based Practice (EBP).
Dr. Fawad 'Peerzad', neuro-surgeon, talked about the role of physical therapy for neurological patients, and his positive experience of the work of physical therapists in Afghanistan.
The physical therapy students did a role play on how physical therapy can help people with back pain, and on accessibility of physical therapy for rural areas of Afghanistan.
After the presentations, gifts were presented for the best physical therapist of the year, Rafiullah, and for a non-physical therapist who has supported the physical therapy profession, Sayeed Kabir.
The ceremony concluded with prayers and best wishes for further success for the physical therapists of Afghanistan.
CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT TASK FORCE MEETINGS
AAPT has been represented on the Curriculum Development Task Force, and attended the following meetings: 21st February, 15th March 2008, 12th April, 15th May, 19th June, 29th July, 28th August and 21st October.
PTI ADVISOR BOARD MEETINGS
In 2008, it has been decided that an Advisory Board for PTI be established, with representation from key stakeholders. AAPT is represented, where the AAPT President is one of the members of this Board. The following meetings were attended: 4th August and 13th October, at PTI.
PUBLIC AWARENESS RAISING
Since the focus of 2008 was on strengthening the Association, there was less time for general Public Awareness raising. As the structure of the Association is further strengthened (particularly in the regions), this will need particular focus. There are now more resources available through the support of the SCA, and this can open up more possibilities in raising awareness in the general public.
AWARENESS FOR MEDICAL DOCTORS
On 10th May, Ms Zara Pennicook, physiotherapist from Australia, did a session with 50 medical doctors and paramedical staff from Wazir Akbar Khan Hospital, explaining the benefits of physical therapy. AAPT also met with the Vice president of WAK Hospital Dr Nooraqa Akrami on this day to present AAPT and discuss awareness raising for medical doctors and paramedical professions. On 30th July AAPT met with the President of Medical Faculty Dr. Obeid, to discuss Continued Education for Medical Students.
For the next mandate period, the Publishing and Information Officer should look at revising the material for awareness raising of medical staff. HI has some documents for this, which was started by Chiara Retis, but was never completed. This should be followed up.
International conference
Habiburahman Habib, President of AAPT 2008, attended the Global Health Workforce Alliance (GHWA) conference in Kampala, Uganda, 2-7th March 2008. Report available from Habib. The trip was sponsored by WHO.
Publication and information
An important part of AAPTs work is spreading awareness and information about physiotherapy, both externally, and internally. Various things have been done in this regard:
NEWSLETTERS AND MAGAZINE
The publication and distribution of the previous magazine has not been working very well. Therefore, it was decided that a newsletter would be published on a quarterly basis, in a simple word document that is distributed through email to all stakeholders and physiotherapists. The aim is to be transparent and show members and others what AAPT is doing. In practice, the distribution has not worked so well, and contact information for all physiotherapists in the country needs to be revised. Those who do not have access to email, or are not working with an NGO who can pass on the information, should be sent hard copies.
BROCHURE
A brochure has been made which introduces AAPT, and can also be used to distribute in hospitals, clinics, ministries etc, to give information about physiotherapy. These are available from the AAPT office.
WEBSITE
To improve visibility of AAPT, not the least internationally now that AAPT is a member of WCPT, AAPT has made a website, please see www.aapt.org.af
INTERNET
Internet has been available from Fall 2008, through PTI. For 2009 the cost of Internet has been included in the AAPT budget ($100 per month), and further possibilities for funding for this need to be investigated.
OTHER
New logo: As AAPT has changed it's name, and also since the old logo did not really represent the objectives of AAPT, the logo was revised (see beginning of this document). The hand was chosen, since this is one of the key tools of a physiotherapist, and the position of the hand represents the support of AAPT for the physical therapy profession of Afghanistan. The colours of the Afghan flag are included in the acronym. The symbol is round, and in a spiraling form, showing that physiotherapy in Afghanistan is constantly evolving and developing, AAPT has a key role in promoting this.
New email: With the change of name, AAPT changed their email address to
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There is also an email made, in connection with the website:
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Other bits and pieces.New ID cards, membership forms and various other forms have been made, and are in the process of being printed. These will be available from the AAPT Office. A new sign is in the process of being made, as the old one still had the old name.
For the next mandate period, it has been decided that one person should be chosen to work with all issues related to publications and spreading information. The Secretary has done this in 2008, but it is a very big job. A job description has been made for this position, which will also be chosen at the General Assembly.
Regional committees / work in the regions
AAPT made seven regions, based on the number and distribution of physical therapists in Afghanistan, as has been presented before. It was not possible in 2008 to put much effort into strengthening these regions, due to the need of first making a stronger base for the Association. There have been issues with passing on information to the regions, and problems with getting the membership fees. Working with strengthening the regional committees will be an important part of the work for the next mandate period.
Research
Physical therapy research is a new field in Afghanistan. Some information about what research is available can be found on the AAPT website. The first modular upgrading students have in 2008 had the first training in doing research. Their literature reviews are published in the AAPT magazine. As Afghan physiotherapists become more familiar with research, AAPT should be in the frontline in promoting and supporting these physical therapists. AAPT should also encourage the use and spread of updated materials and findings which are relevant for physical therapists in Afghanistan.
Grant from SCA to participate in AWP/WCPT-IAP Congress in Mumbai 2009
A proposal was sent to SCA, to apply for funding from their Small Project Funds (SPF), to enable two AAPT Executive Committee members to participate in the international physiotherapy congress in Mumbai 2009. This was granted. Due to additional funding being made available, it will be possible to send 4 people to Mumbai, and this money will come from a separate budget from the SCA, through its direct support to AAPT.
Further support for AAPT
Lobbying has been done for further support for AAPT from the SCA, after the pilot year of 2008, both financially and technically. The Advisory position will continue, and the recruitment process for this is underway.
Challenges
Overall, there have been a number of improvements in AAPT during 2008, where the structure has been revised and adapted to fit the possibilities and context of Afghan physical therapists.
One challenge has been encouraging participation from regions in AAPTs work. The regional representation on the Executive Committee was not consistent, and the members were not so active. Another main challenge has been recruiting members, and it has not been possible to put much time on this, since the main focus on the year been on strengthening the basic structure of AAPT. It will be a key issue to focus on in the next mandate period, as more focus is put on strengthening regional committees, and encouraging more participation from the regions. Steps have been made to address this issue in terms of the structure of the Executive Committee and in the work plan for 2009-10, this is a central issue.
Finally, getting support from stakeholders and employers will need attention in the coming mandate period, as without this support, AAPT will have difficulty involving it's members in the important process of supporting and developing physiotherapy in Afghanistan.