PAKISTAN’S educational system remains trapped in a web of issues that pose significant threats to educational standards, particularly for medical practitioners.
Physical Therapy is one of them that is growing with great strides throughout the world, playing a crucial role in healthcare by managing pain, improving mobility and aiding in rehabilitation.
However, despite increased global demand for Physical Therapists, Pakistan’s Physical Therapists face an uphill battle, and one of the biggest challenges is the lack of structured house jobs and internships by the respective institutes from which they have graduated.
Most of the students who are enrolled in leading so-called famous and prestigious institutes are deceived by their glittering reputation believing that they are stepping into a world of endless opportunities.
These institutions pledge to provide internships, house jobs, or jobs to their graduates.
However, reality hits them soon like a bolt from the blue when these institutions wash their hands of the responsibility and students are left to navigate the vast ocean of job hunting alone.
This matter is consistent with several Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations as it affects the healthcare system, education quality and employment opportunities for graduates.
So, at this point, such graduates become disheartened and a new struggle begins for them holding degrees in hand but opportunities out of reach.
Either they get internships based on personal connections rather than professional competence which are also unpaid in most cases and those without influential ties find themselves left in the lurch as they struggle to envision a bright future after spending their parent’s hard-earned money in huge amounts.
Those who have the financial means establish their private setups and start to work independently.
In contrast, others take steps to settle abroad where their skills and hard work are at least rewarded, recognized and compensated contributing to the depletion of human resources in the local healthcare sector.
The shortage of qualified physical therapists in the healthcare system directly undermines the quality of patient care, which in turn adversely affects the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 3: Good Health and Well-Being set by the United Nations whose aim is to achieve universal health coverage for all, a goal that is impossible to achieve without staff in healthcare professions like physical therapy that is both available and adequately trained ensuring adequate investment in health systems which is needed to support countries in their recovery and strengthen resilience against future health challenges.
In the current situation, this advancement is hampered by the absence of organized training and career assistance.
Additionally, this aspect relates to United Nations SDG 4: Quality Education because an inadequate amount of hands-on, practical training degrades education and leaves graduates unprepared for the workforce.
Insufficient internships and job placements indicate that educational institutions must improve their curriculum and offer practical experience.
Furthermore, these circumstances also illustrate the difficulty in accomplishing SDG No.8: Decent Work and Economic Growth of the United Nations.
Graduates face economic stagnation if they cannot find respectable employment or career paths, which wastes human potential and underutilized skills.
The government should take steps to tackle this situation before it worsens.
Strict regulations should ensure that the universities offering Physical Therapy Programs are not merely making empty promises but are officially recognized by the Higher Education Commission HEC and affiliated with a reputable hospital for hands-on training.
Moreover, if the field has already become saturated, flooding it with more graduates must be avoided to prevent future crises.
It is also important for the government to incentivize the development of more internships and job placement opportunities, as well as fostering collaboration between educational institutions and healthcare providers.
This would help graduates gain practical experience while still in their academic programs and smooth their transition into full-time employment.
In addition to facilitating their move into full-time employment, this would enable graduates to obtain real-world experience while still enrolled in their degrees.
This will support the achievement of SDGs 3, 4, and 8, promoting a healthier, more educated, and economically stable future of Pakistan.
But without urgent action, Pakistan faces a future where countless graduates are left jobless, their skills wasted and their dreams unfulfilled.
The time to act is now.
Pakistan must provide opportunities for physical therapy graduates to thrive to invest in the future of its healthcare workforce.
A healthier, better-educated, and more economically secure future for the nation can be ensured by assisting in the accomplishment of SDGs 3, 4, and 8.
Pakistan can create an educational system that prepares students for the workforce, a healthcare system that offers high-quality treatment, and economic growth powered by qualified individuals with the right help.
Action must be taken immediately, and both the government and educational institutions bear the burden of improving and supporting the environment for physical therapy graduates.
—The writer is an Islamabad-based Doctor of Physical Therapy, human rights activist & research scholar. (abdullah5718199@gmail.com)
