NEW programmes to help professionals make a mid-career switch to occupational therapy and physiotherapy will be launched next April.
Next year, Nanyang Polytechnic will increase its annual intake of physiotherapy students from 50 now to 80, and of occupational therapy students from 50 now to 60.
The moves are part of the Government's push to increase the number of health-care workers to cope with a growing and ageing population, and rising numbers of foreign patients seeking medical attention here.
Announcing the new schemes under the Professionals Conversion Programme on Friday at a three-day conference on breast cancer, Manpower Minister Ng Eng Hen also suggested setting up a university faculty here to train allied health professionals. This includes physiotherapists and occupational and speech therapists.
This could be modelled after institutions renowned in the field such as the University of Sydney and the University of Southern California.
Speaking to about 300 breast cancer experts from 19 countries, Dr Ng said: 'Because the health-care sector offers good career prospects for Singaporeans, it is time to consider if we should step up capacity. We have started some initiatives, but I get the sense they are not quite enough.'
The Ministry of Health said on Friday that it was working with the Education Ministry to develop allied health degree programmes here.
Singapore has about 450 physiotherapists and 250 occupational therapists. About seven in 10 have degrees, while the rest have diplomas.
The new programmes follow one that was started for training mid-career nurses four years ago.
That has since yielded 330 mid-career nurses, with another 131 under training now.
The Workforce Development Agency (WDA), which administers the two new programmes, has already begun accepting applications for the first batch of 10 physiotherapy places and 10 occupational therapy places.
The three-year courses will be conducted by Nanyang Polytechnic. The students will be partly sponsored by, and later work for, the National Healthcare Group and Singapore Health Services.
Applicants should have a recognised degree, local polytechnic diploma or at least three A-level credits, and two years' work experience in sectors not related to health.
