ZHO, Philippines university sign pact on training students

ABU DHABI / WAM

Zayed Higher Organisation for People of Determination (ZHO) signed a joint memorandum of understanding with the Southwestern University PHINMA (SWU PHINMA) in the Philippines to train students of the College of Rehabilitative Sciences at the health care management departments of ZHO’s care and rehabilitation centres in neurological rehabilitation therapy services for children, as part of the ZHO-established strategic partnerships.
The MoU was signed by Abdullah Abdul Ali Al-Humaidan, ZHO’s Secretary-General, and Dr Lohindren V Adorable, Dean, School of Health and Allied Health Sciences Concurrent Dean, College of Rehabilitative Sciences.
The signing ceremony took place at ZHO’s headquarters in the presence of Alfonso Ferdinand, Ambassador of the Republic of the Philippines to the UAE, and leaders from both sides and specialists from SWU PHINMA’s scientific staff.
Under the MoU, ZHO will provide an applied clinical training programme for graduates of the Physical-Occupational Therapy Programme and logistical support for students at the College of Health Sciences and Rehabilitation at SWU PHINMA in physical and occupational therapy.
The rehabilitation training spans over 480 hours (8 hours a day or 40 hours a week) along with following up on the trainees’ performance by a specialised work team from ZHO, holding master’s and PhD, as qualified and capable therapists to cover the supervision and training needs of the therapeutic rehabilitation’s external students.
Through the MoU, SWU PHINMA will nominate a maximum of 6 trainees per semester for a period of no less than two months before the training commences, committed to educating them about applying the concepts of customer service, personal service, public safety and security while providing physical therapy services.
The training is only an option for trainees who are interested in such clinical training which exceeds the minimum requirements set by the Philippine Commission on Higher Education (CHED).
Abdullah Al-Humaidan hailed this partnership with the prestigious SWU PHINMA, embodying the desire of both sides to consolidate their cooperation relations in many fields. “Our wise leadership has accustomed us to providing assistance and support to everyone, so we took the initiative to approve SWU PHINMA’s request on training students at the College of Health Sciences and Rehabilitation in managing health care at ZHO and transferring the expertise of ZHO’s specialised cadres to the Filipino university students,” he said.
Al-Humaidan also welcomed the provision of the expertise of ZHO’s and its well-reputed professional cadres, the exchange of visits between officials from both sides and joint cooperation in several fields and all activities that would contribute to serving people of determination, so they can integrate into their communities to become a productive workforce and contributor in building society.
For her part, Cheryl Jin Bee Chan, Chief Operations Officer at SWU PHINMA, hailed ZHO as a key partner in SWU PHINMA’s clinical training programme, saying, “This aims at providing education at a global level and clinical training to the physical-occupational therapy trainees of SWU PHINMA.”
This partnership embodies the fruitful cooperation that serves the interests of trainees and enhances their professional development, as they will take part in practical experiments and therapy sessions geared towards honing their skills and providing them with a comprehensive understanding of their areas of work.
At the clinical training level, this cooperation gives full play to initiatives, including workshops, seminars and cultural exchange programs. This is aimed at enriching the trainees’ learning experiences and cementing the deep understanding of practices in both countries, she said.
Cheryl voiced thanks to ZHO for signing the MoU, noting that the cooperation between both sides is a positive step towards the future of the trainees as key players in their society and physical occupational therapy.