ESTABLISHMENT OF THE FIRST MASTER'S DEGREE IN PHYSIOTHERAPY IN VIETNAM

T.-V. Le^1,2, V. Feipel³, P. Willems²

¹University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, ²Université Catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, ³Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium

Background: Before 2020, the highest training degree in Physiotherapy in Vietnam was bachelor. According to the laws, it is necessary to have at least 01 PhD and 5 Masters in Physiotherapy to have a separate program named Bachelor of Physiotherapy, instead of "Rehabilitation Technique". This project is part of the more general plan to consolidate the rehabilitation process in Vietnam. It is carried out in collaboration between the University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh (UMP)which one of the largest medical university in Vietnam, the Faculty of Motor Sciences (FSM) of UCLouvain, the Faculty of Motor Sciences (FSM) of the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), World Physiotherapy (WP) and Humanity and Inclusion (former Handicap International - HI).

Purpose: The specific aims of the project are as follows (1) Creating 2 cycles of Master's programme in physiotherapy in Vietnam within the UMP. This two years Master aims at improving the training of teachers and clinical educators of the Bachelor in Physiotherapy, (2) training PhDs in physiotherapy for UMP’s lecturers at Belgian universities (UCLouvain or ULB). Those lecturers will teach the specific topics of physiotherapy and sustain the master programme at the end of the ARES project in December 2025.

Methods: The project started in September 2019 with the help of a FAI budget (Fond d'Aide à l'International) of the UCLouvain. In order to prepare the candidates for the entrance exam, four one-week workshops were scheduled on the following topics: biomechanics applied to physiotherapy, musculoskeletal physiotherapy, neurophysiology applied to physiotherapy and physiotherapy of the cardiorespiratory system. The project funded by ARES (Académie de recherche et d’ensignement superieur) started officially in June 2020 to organize 02 cycle of master courses at UMP and provide 04 PhDs scholarship in Physiotherapy in Belgium for UMP faculties. The master course includes 60 credits. The general subjects were taught by Vietnamese teachers and the specific courses in physiotherapy by Belgian teachers using distance learning (due to pandemic) or during one to two-week workshops in Vietnam for each. For the PhD training, the Vietnamese candidates spend four months in Belgium each year and collect and analyse the data in Vietnam during the eight other months. The diploma will be delivered by the Belgian Institutions.

Results: For the first cohort, 14 candidates passed the entrance exam and enrolled in the Master program. There were 40 credits taught by 30 Belgian professors from UClouvain and ULB (14 online and 16 on-site). The master thesis of each student was supervised by both Belgian and Vietnamese supervisors. For the second cohort, there were 20 students enrolled in September 2022. Besides, 04 Physiotherapy lecturers were selected and enrolled in the doctorate program in Physiotherapy at UClouvain and ULB in 03 areas: musculoskeletal, cardiovascular and neurological disorders.

Conclusions: The project is in its half-way and shows positive impacts on the development of physiotherapy education not only in UMP but in Vietnam.

Implications: The design and implication of the project can be replicated in other countries to develop physiotherapy education.

Funding acknowledgements: The project is funded by ARES (Académie de recherche et d’ensignement superieur), Belgium.

Keywords:
Physiotherapy education

Topics:
Education

Did this work require ethics approval? No

Reason: This is a new approach to established a post graduate program in Physiotherapy in low-resource countries. It have been approved by Vietnamese and Belgian government.