Malaysian Association of Speech Language and Hearing

President's Annual Speech 2003

PRESIDENT'S ANNUAL REPORT
(2002-2003)

1. Administrative Issues
2. Membership
3. Public Education/Awareness
4. Public Relations
5. Professional Issues
6. Publications
7. Policy Development
8. Finance
9. Continuing Professional Development
10. Working with government agencies
11. International Relations
12. Student Affairs
13. Conclusion

1. Administrative Issues

Limited resources continue to be an issue of concern. The Executive Committee members at all times utilize their own resources (computer software and hardware) to carry out some of the administrative work. Although there have not been major problems arising from this constraint, the issue of professionalism is nevertheless an area that needs addressing. For example, without the necessary software, we are not able to attach our documents in PDF format in our communication with external parties. As such, the contents of our documents (which are often in Microsoft Word format) are susceptible to modifications by anyone.

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2. Membership

This year, we are continuing to give out membership packs to new members. In addition, current members are also receiving these packs as documents not in the previous packs needed to be given to members. This year’s packs contain the Standards of Good Practice for Audiologists, MASH Constitution and Code of Ethics (updated version), The President’s Report, the Treasurer’s Report, Membership Directory and MASH Membership Certificate.

As determined by the previous Executive Committee, the deadline for membership fees was set on the 31st of May 2003. However, this deadline was again ignored by a large section of the MASH population. For those who did not observe that deadline, they will have the opportunity to renew their membership during the AGM. However, their names will not appear in the updated June 2003 MASH directory. As of 24 June 2003, we have 70 ordinary members, 2 associate members and 80 student members, bringing to a total of 152 members.

Sandra Vandort and Melissa Peter have submitted a paper on the criteria for Honorary Membership in MASH. Upon review of the paper, MASH members have requested that more specifics be incorporated. For example, the exact procedure in nominating a person for Honorary Membership and the criteria in determining a prospective member’s eligibility for Honorary Membership.

The Executive Committee of MASH held a meeting with the Executive Committee of Persapsi to persuade them to join MASH. Highlights of the discussion are as follows :-

(a) They considered themselves a professional body and a non-government organization (NGO) at the same time. It seemed that they were not clear what their exact role is.

(b) Their condition for the proposed merger between MASH and Persapsi was that the merged entity would drop the MASH name and would be known as Persapsi. They did not give regard to the fact that MASH is a more established organization.

(c) They allow anyone who is interested in speech-language pathology and audiology to become members.

Although this strategy may make Persapsi a popular organization, it does come with a few concerns which, when considered in serious light, may far outweigh the popularity factor. The inclusion of non-professionals is contradictory to the objective of making Persapsi a professional body. In the long run, it will be much more difficult to lead the organization towards common goals due to divergence of interests and needs between professional and non-professional members. We feel that there are other alternatives to engaging and interacting with non-professionals or professionals from other disciplines. The executive committee has made it known to the membership during the general meeting that dual membership in both MASH and Persapsi will not be tolerated by MASH. New renewal forms have been designed to request more information from applicants about their membership in other bodies.

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3.Public Education / Awareness

This year, the Parenthood magazine expressed their keenness to have MASH contribute regularly to the magazine. Last year, Ms. Teresa Chin from the magazine interviewed Mazwin Omar and Pamela Thomas Joseph for an article on hearing loss/rehab, which appeared in their June 2002 volume. This year, as the magazine requested regular contributions from MASH, the executive committee felt strongly that MASH (and the member writer) should be compensated monetarily for each article written and submitted, similar to the practice that the magazine has with other regular contributors. The magazine editor has promised to ‘look into the matter’ but unfortunately, they have yet to get back to us.

We have so far contacted newspapers such as The Sunday Mail and Kumpulan Utusan. We have also sent out letters to family magazines such as Pa & Ma, jelita, Nona, Today’s Parents, Motherhood, Cleo, Health Today and Ibu.

On 22 June 2003, an article appeared in the education section of The Sunday Mail featuring our very on Vice President, Tye Wuey Ping. The article addressed basic issues in a speech pathology career such as job prospects, basic salary and helpful personal characteristics. It also mentioned MASH as the professional body representing SLPs and audiologists in this country.

I was invited to present a paper at the International Symposium on Linguistics and Speech and Hearing Sciences 2002 organized by the Department of Audiology and Speech Sciences of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and the Linguistics Department of Lund University on the 21st –23rd of October last year. The paper was titled ‘The Development of Speech Pathology and Audiology in Malaysia and the Challenges Faced by MASH as a Professional Body’. It was truly a challenge writing that paper because of the lack of written information out there. I had to rely much on people’s memories of events.

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4.Public Relations

We have been receiving many email enquiries through our website. The following is a breakdown of the type of enquiries we have received over the past year:

Employment opportunities
Research funding
Speech therapy services
Volunteer services
Educational opportunities and program information

Recently, the Executive Committee discussed the need to make the website more interactive. We agreed that due to the funds needed to set up and maintain on interactive website, this can be done at a later stage of MASH’s development.

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5.Professional Issues

The Executive Committee has begun to look at the issue of registering qualified speech pathologists and audiologists to ensure that only qualified professionals can use the title and practice in this country. The Physiotherapy Association of Malaysia and the Occupational therapy of Malaysia were contacted as they were the other two allied health profession grappling with the same issue. The president of the PT association, Mr. Marc Daniel, has since contacted us. A meeting will be set up between MASH and the PT association to discuss this further.

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6.Publications

‘Within Earshot’ has a new look and we thank the committee for doing such a great job with the bulletin. Melissa Peter remains as Editor and Linda Blankanette, Yazmin Ahmad Rusli, Hasherah Ibrahim and Poh Boon Fong are Sub-editors. This year, two companies (Oticon and Siemens) have expressed interest in advertising in our bulletin.

Last year, Audrey Colliver reported that the Ministry of Health (MOH) was keen to jointly produce brochures on the different speech, language and hearing disorders for public awareness and education. Unfortunately, the people involved in producing these brochures have not completed them. However, we would like to thank Poh Boon Fong for preparing an excellent brochure on Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD).

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7.Policy Development

The document for ‘Credentialing the Allied Health Professional: Audiologist’ for the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998 has been completed by the working committee comprising Mazwin Omar, Ngiow Jen Sen and Tan Cheng Seng and finalized by the membership. The document will be sent to the MOH by next month. YB Dato’ Chua Jui Meng, the Minister of Health, has stated that the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998 will be tabled in Parliament by the end of the year.

The working committee of Mazwin Omar, Tan Cheng Seng, Ngiow Jen Sen and Rafidah Mazlan has successfully completed the Standards of Good Practice for Audiology, which is included in this year’s membership pack. The Executive Committee would like to extend our heartfelt thanks for all the hard work put in by the committee.

The Planning Committee comprising Audrey Colliver, Tan Cheng Seng, Shireen Abdullah and myself has begun the process of developing a 10-year plan for MASH. The process starts at this year’s AGM with a planning session organized at the end of the AGM for members to discuss issues under specific categories that MASH should be working on. The categories are as follows:

a.Management / Administration
b.Membership
c.Public Awareness/ Education.
d.Public Relations
e.Student Affairs
f.Continuing Professional Education/ Professional Development
g.Professional Issues
h.Policy Development
i.Research
j.Finance
k.International Affairs
l.Publications
m.Legislation
n.Networking with government and non-government agencies

The Planning Committee hopes to be able to present the 10-year plan to members by the end of the year.

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8.Finance

Please refer to the Treasurer’s Report.

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9.Continuing Professional Development

The Executive Committee sent out a questionnaire (designed by Tye Wuey Ping) to all members registered with MASH’s yahoogroups to find out what members wanted for continuing education seminars. We are grateful to those who have sent us almost immediate replies. The general feeling of the members was that both assessment and therapeutic strategies be covered in the seminars and that the seminars be opened to both members and non-members, but the latter should be charged a higher fee for registration. The working committee headed by Ainul Naquiah will plan a few seminars from July 2003-2004.

At the moment, the MASH discussion group at mash1995@yahoogroups.com§ is being used mostly to disseminate information to members rather than a discussion avenue. We hope that more members will start using yahoogroups to discuss matters pertaining to assessment and therapy of new and interesting case types for the benefit of everyone.

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10.Working With Government Agencies

a.Pharmaceutical Services Division – regulating the sale of hearing aids
b.Medical Development Division – drafting of ‘Credentialing the Allied Health Professional – Audiologist’ for the Private Facilities and Services Act 1998
c.Health Education Division – printing of brochures on speech, language and hearing disorders for public awareness
d.Family Health Development Division – National Plan of Action on the Prevention and Management of Deafness and Hearing Impairment

The working committee of Tan Cheng Seng, Mok Yong Yaw and Mas Diana Samsudin were to have presented the member audiologists’ views on the issues and options available to regulate the sale of hearing aids. As we lack information on the matter, we decided to contact other associations from across the world to learn from their experience. Apart from ISHA, other associations have not replied to our inquiry. The committee will compile the information from these associations for the Executive Committee to bring up with the MOH.

The printing of brochures is pending submission of those brochures to the executive committee by the responsible individuals.

Another issue that has recently cropped up is the fact that the Public Services Department (PSD) and the MOH are still contacting individuals rather than MASH to verify matters affecting the two professions. As we have been invited to attend this year’s Majlis Dialog Kesihatan 2003 on 7-8 July, we plan to bring this issue up to the attention of the relevant officers-in-charge.

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11.International Relations

MASH was recently contacted by Speech Pathology Australia (SPA) requesting a meeting to discuss bilateral cooperation between the two organizations. We had set up a meeting with the president of SPA in May 2003. Unfortunately, because of developments in the world (war on Iraq and SARS), the SPA president was advised to postpone her trip to Asia until September or October of this year.

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12.Student Affairs

MASH and the Department of Audiology and Speech Sciences (JASP) of UKM are jointly organizing a forum targeted specifically for, but not limited to, first year students of the department. The forum aims to allay students’ anxieties about the future of speech pathology and audiology in this country. MASH invited 7 members representing different work settings to talk about their experiences setting up services and working with other supportive / nonsupportive professionals. The following are the speakers:

Speech Pathology Setting Audiology - Haniza
Government hospital - Aminah,Linda
Private hospital - Mawarni
Private centre - Re Gal,Tracy Ng
Education/Ministry - Hanita

We would like to thank the speakers for volunteering to make the forum a success.

Shireen Abdullah and I were both invited as external examiners for this year’s Clinical Viva at the JASP. It was the first time for both of us and we trust that both parties (examiners and students) were not too traumatized by the experience!

A few members of MASH were again invited to present the Professional Issues lectures to the final year students of the department.

Wong Min Ney has been appointed as the new Student Liaison Officer, taking over Nashrah Maamor, who was promoted as Coordinator of the Audiology program at the JASP.

We are proud to announce the following recipients of the MASH Student Awards:

Best Clinical Practicum (Audiology) : Saravanan Selanduray
Best Clinical Practicum (Speech Language Pathology): Hooi Poh Meng
Best Thesis (Audiology) : Poh Boon Fong
Best Thesis (Speech Language Pathology) : Magdalene Ong

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Conclusion

The past year has been a roller coaster ride for all of us in the Executive Committee. At times, we felt that we were dealing with too many day-to-day problems of running an association. As Stephen Covey of ‘The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People’ contends, we were doing more managing than leading. It was frustrating to say the least.

I would like to extend my gratitude to the Executive Committee and members of other working committees for their commitment in getting things done, especially when each leads busy professional lives.


Farah A. Mohd Alkaf
President
June 2003

President's Annual Speech 2002

PRESIDENT'S ANNUAL REPORT
(2001-2002)

1. Administrative Issues
2. Membership
3. Public Education/Awareness
4. Public Relations
5. Professional Issues
6. Publications
7. Policy Development
8. Finance
9. Continuing Professional Development
10. Working with government agencies
11. International Relations
12. Student Affairs
13. Conclusion

This past year saw an increase in awareness of MASH as the professional body representing speech-language pathologists and audiologists in Malaysia. The Executive Committee found it very challenging, coping with enquiries and the projects planned for the year. Despite holding full-time jobs the members of the committee managed to accomplish much in areas listed below.


1. Administrative Issues

The increase of work in all areas of MASH, has caused an increase in our administrative costs. Furthermore, the increase in workload makes it crucial for MASH to have full time secretarial support. Due to our current financial constraints, we may have to settle for employing someone on a part-time basis. It is hoped that one of our members will come forward to volunteer for this position.

It was decided that any stand made by MASH would be printed and distributed to our members. This is to avoid rumours circulating regarding MASH's position on important policy matters. It must be stressed that individual opinions do not represent the stand of the whole membership.
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2. Membership

For the first time in our history, members have been presented with Membership Packs. These are given out to each member in the Ordinary and Associate category. The packs include the MASH Constitution, Code of Ethics, Standards of Practice for Speech-Language Pathologists (presenting Disorders), MASH History Brochure, Membership Directory and MASH Membership Certificate.

The Committee purchased 500 pieces of plastic files for these membership packs as they were cheaper in bulk and can be used in the future. A total of 40 packs were prepared for this AGM. The cost of producing per pack is approx. RM 11.

The current membership has increased to 34 Ordinary Members, 2 Associate Members and 94 Student Members.

The deadline for receipt of membership fees continues to be ignored. This causes considerable extra work for the Executive Committee who needs to check with each individual member. Members are reminded again that their membership fees are renewable on the 31st of May every year, regardless of when they joined the association.

Invitation letters and membership forms have been sent to all UKM lecturers and previous graduates who have yet to join as members.

The Executive Committee supports the suggestion made by our member, Dr Shakil to initiate the category of Life Membership. This will bring quick revenue to the organization. We will leave this to the next committee to implement.
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3. Public Education/Awareness

The following articles appeared in the newspapers and magazine. They all included a statement regarding MASH as the professional body and our contact details.

• The Sun published the article on Dyspraxia on 14th September 2001.
• On 16th December 2001, The Star published an article on Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology as a career in their Education Supplement.
• Following this, The Parenthood magazine, contacted us regarding an article on hearing impairment. The article 'The Silent Handicap', by Teresa Chin was published in their June 2002 issue. They have also agreed to publish two other articles on speech and language from 0-6 years written by Pamela Thomas and Brian Colliver.
• Our response advising a parent regarding her child who is stammering, in Ruth Liew's column on Parenting in The Star was published in May 2002.

Many enquiries were received from various sources following the publication of these articles.

Although The Berita Harian newspaper has agreed to publish articles in Bahasa Malaysia, the translation by our members is taking a long time.

I was invited to present a talk at the Malaysian Paediatric Association Conference (30th August to 2nd September) in Pahang on 'Managing Communication Problems in Children'. Our Membership Directory and MASH brochure were distributed at the conference.

We have accepted an invitation to the International Symposium on Linguistics and Speech & Hearing Sciences 2002 (21st -23rd October to present a paper on the 'development of the speech pathology and audiology profession in Malaysia and challenges faced by MASH as the professional body'. This is organized by the Audiology and Speech Sciences Department of University Kebangsaan Malaysia and the Linguistics Department of Lund University.
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4. Public Relations

At the request of our members, a total of 526 letters were sent out to private hospitals, non-government agencies, and government agencies. The letters informed them about our professional organization MASH, the SLP and Audiology profession and included a list of our current members. Thank you to Jennifer and Sharmila and their families for completing this massive task.

Ngiow Jen Sen attended the Kempen Promosi Cara Hidup Sihat at PWTC organized by the Ministry of Health on 28th February, 2002.

The MASH website, launched last year has received a steady stream of enquiries from parents, potential students, professionals seeking employment and individuals conducting research. Between July 2001 and May 2002, we responded to 145 enquiries. We strongly encourage the next committee to form a working party to handle this to avoid being overwhelmed. Thank you to Pamela and Jen Sen for handling much of this.

This year the website has been updated with online membership forms, an announcements page, brochures, the president's report and links to other professional organizations. Thank you Jen Sen.

An emerging role for MASH is that of an advisory body. Some of the requests received include:

• Advice on the setting up of a speech therapy clinic at MAGIC, (Malaysian Association of Guardians for the Intellectually Challenged)
• Advice and guidance to new graduates setting up speech therapy clinics.
• Information on speech therapy services for Mediaconsult, a consulting group advising on the setting up of private hospitals.
• Advice on setting up a speech therapy clinic and starting a course at the International Islamic University (Pahang)
• Advice on the basic requirements for the setting up of speech therapy clinics in health care centers by the Ministry of Health

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5. Professional Issues

We started to work out a recommended fee schedule for members. A survey of the range of current charges was documented.

The terminology of 'Consultant' and 'Specialist' still needs to be followed up by the next committee.
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6. Publications

The MASH bulletin 'Within Earshot' has survived its second year. We are thankful to the committee comprising Melissa Peters, Editor and Basyariatul, Azmarul and Mawarni, Sub-editors. They desperately need volunteers as Basyariatul and Azmarul will be leaving to further their studies.

We received our first enquiry regarding advertisement from a recruitment agency in Singapore. We have decided that the cost of advertisement will be as follows:

1. Full-page(RM 250)
2. Half-page(RM 150)

Last year, the Ministry of Health (Health Education Division) agreed to our proposal to jointly produce brochures on the different speech, language and hearing disorders. However to date, the individuals responsible have not completed them. We hope the next committee will follow up with this.
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7. Policy Development

'Credentialing the Allied Health Professional: Speech-Language Pathologist and Audiologist' for the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act 1998.

Due to different requirements and the need to present these two professions as separate, the joint committee decided that we would separate the documents for audiology and speech-language pathology. The document for Speech-Language Pathologists was finalized at a meeting on 8th June 2002 and has been sent to the Ministry of Health. The document for audiologists will be finalized at the next meeting.

The Standards of Practice for Speech and Language Pathologists (Presenting Disorders) adapted from 'Communicating Quality' by the Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists (UK) has been completed. A pat on the back to Sharmila and Jennifer for all their hardwork and perseverance. This is included in your membership packs.

A Working party comprising Tan Cheng Seng, Mazwin Omar, Ngiow Jen Sen and Rafidah Mazlan are still in the process of working on a draft of the Guidelines of Practice for Audiologists.

Following an initial request by the Public Service Department (PSD), a joint meeting between UKM and MASH was held. The working party comprising Mazwin Omar, Shireen Abdullah, Rafidah Mazlan and Cila Umat prepared a document on the formulation of a salary structure for speech-language pathologists and audiologists as well as a recommendation of salary revision in the Ministry of Health. A joint letter signed by myself and Cila Umat (Head of Dept.) was sent to the PSD on 11th October 2001, with a note to ignore any previous documents sent in by individuals not representing MASH the professional body or UKM.

This year, we received the final draft of the proposed legislative reform to the Education Act initiated by the Bar Council Law Reform Committee. We are very proud that they have included our suggestions made at the meeting on 14th October 2000.

There has been a request by the Hong Kong Association of Speech Therapists to be an affiliate member. However, we were not able to accommodate their request as this category is not included in our in our constitution at this time.

The working party comprising Melissa, and Sandra have drawn up the criterion for Honorary Membership. This will be finalized after final comments and suggestions by members at the next meeting.

I would like to announce the formation of a Planning Team to prepare a 10-year development plan for MASH. The members of this team will comprise the following individuals: Assoc. Prof. Dr Shakil, Mr Tan Cheng Seng, previous president's Puan Shireen Abdullah and myself as well as the next elected president. The brief of this committee is to formulate a 10-year developmental plan for MASH. A long-term plan is necessary to give MASH a clear direction and ensure continuity of its policies.
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8. Finance

Please refer to the Treasurer's Report.


9. Continuing Professional Development

The Mash Discussion group ( mash1995@yahoogroups.com) has 32 members to date. This is a good forum for members to get information or share their experience and we urge all new graduates to join this group.

The Executive Committee has contacted Kim Nathan, a special education teacher with a special interest in alternative communication and software for children with special needs. She has agreed to present a talk and practical demonstration to our members. We hope it will be possible for her to do this at the next meeting.
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10. Working with government agencies

The following are our current and ongoing involvement with the different divisions of the Ministry of Health:

• Family Health Development Division
  1. Manual on Management of Communication Problems (0 - 6yrs) for use by Public Health Personnel
  2. National Plan of Action on the Prevention and Management of Deafness and Hearing Impairment"
  3. Advice on budget and setting up of speech therapy clinics in the Health center clinics nationwide
• Health Education Division - Printing of brochures on speech, language and hearing disorders
• Pharmaceutical Services Division - Regulation of the sale of hearing aids
• Medical Development Division - Drafting of the document on 'Credentialing the Speech-Language Pathologist and Audiologist' for the Private Healthcare Facilities & Services Act 1998
• Public Health Division - Future planning and development for the manpower needs of public healthcare professionals in public health centre clinics in Malaysia

MASH was represented by Mazwin and Sharmila on 26-28 July 2001 at a meeting held by the Ministry of Health (Public Health Division)regarding the future planning and development for the manpower needs of public healthcare professionals in public health centre clinics in Malaysia. MASH was responsible to prepare a paper for the future planning and development for the manpower needs of the speech-language pathology and audiology profession.

Tye presented our views and suggestions at a meeting organized by the Ministry of Health (Family Health Development Division) to devise a 'National Action Plan on the Prevention and Management of Deafness and Hearing Impairment" on 27th August 2001.

The Ministry of Health (Family Health Development Division) requested MASH to advise them on the setting up of speech therapy clinics at their health center clinics. In January this year, we sent them a proposed initial start-up budget, with a list of basic equipment and facilities required.

MASH was again invited to the annual Majlis Dialog Kesihatan 2002. We have submitted our objectives and activities that will be included in the official booklet. However, we were not able to send them our list of issues before the deadline. We apologise for this.

A follow-up letter has been sent to the Minister of Education regarding the professional body, the qualifications required to practise as a speech-language pathologist and audiologist. Again, no response has been received.
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11. International Relations

Last year we sent letters to professional organizations overseas informing them of MASH and our desire to establish formal links with them. To date, we have received acknowledgements from the Royal College of Speech Therapist (UK) and the American Academy of Audiology, Hong Kong Association of Speech Therapists, Indonesia, Speech Pathology Australia, Speech and Hearing Association Singapore and Japan Association of Speech & Hearing Therapists. The Hong Kong Association has accepted us as their affiliate member.

No response has been received from China, Taiwan, United States, India, Canada, Korea, Phillippines and New Zealand.
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12. Student Affairs

University Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) invited MASH to present the Year 4 Professional Issues lectures. Sharmila, Mazwin, Melissa and myself presented these series of lectures.

Ms Nashrah Maamor has been appointed Student Advisor. To enable easier coordination, the Executive Committee has decided that Student Elections will be held every year at the Annual General Meeting. In addition, only 3rd year students will be eligible for election.

The Student Wing under the leadership of Siti Aminah successfully organized the Student Day on 8th June 2002. The Student Day was funded by charging a small fee (RM5 for student members and RM 10 for non-members) with an additional contribution of RM150 from MASH.

Student members who graduate this year, have until the next AGM to upgrade their membership status. However, if they wish to be included in the Membership Directory, they should upgrade their status as soon as they have officially graduated.

University Kebangsaan Malaysia has invited MASH to upgrade the MASH Student Awards to university level. One of the requirements for this is was for MASH to confirm that we would present the awards for the next 5 years. We have agreed to this in writing. Starting next year, the awards and MASH's name will be stated in the convocation book.

This year we are proud to announce the following recipients of the MASH Student Awards :

• Best Clinical Practicum (Audiology) - Siti Aminah
• Best Clinical Practicum (Speech Language Pathology) - Pang Mei Ling



• Best Thesis (Speech Language Pathology) - Wong Min Ney
• Best Thesis (Audiology) - Kek Tze Ling

We wish them the best of luck in their new jobs and hope they excel in their chosen profession.
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Conclusion

As President, I am often asked 'What can MASH do for us'? If you want to see the speech pathology and audiology profession develop in Malaysia, YOU have to GET INVOLVED and ACTIVELY PARTICIPATE in MASH. No one person or committee can do everything.

I would like to conclude with a famous excerpt of a speech by Theodore Roosevelt.

"It is not the critic who counts, not the one who points out how the strong man stumbled or how the doer of deeds might have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred with sweat and dust and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy cause and who, if he fails, at least fails while bearing greatly so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat'.

My thanks to all the members of the committee who contributed their time and effort regardless of their position in the Executive Committee. I would also like to express my gratitude to all the members who assisted this committee in their 2-year term.

Audrey Colliver
President
June 2002

President's Annual Speech 2001

The Association has achieved a great deal this past year despite several changes in the Executive Committee. The new millennium brings us into a new phase of development. We can no longer afford to be ignorant of the government policies and issues involving the speech-language pathology and audiology professions in Malaysia.

We must educate ourselves. NOW!

The increase in the ordinary and student membership categories is a tremendous boost to our morale. We must especially cultivate the feeling of 'belonging to the professional body' in the student members. They are the future of the profession and the professional body in Malaysia.

I appreciate that all the members have their own jobs in addition to their involvement in MASH. I would like to thank the Executive Committee and MASH members who have contributed their time and effort towards the development of the professional body and the profession in general.

This year the Executive Committee has focused on increasing the membership base, establishing clear standards and guidelines on the criteria for membership in MASH, enhancing the image of the professional body, public education activities, establishing links with professional organizations overseas, working with related government agencies, developing policies regarding the practice of the two professions in Malaysia and establishing a student network. In the coming year, we aim to continue working on the areas previously mentioned as well as providing regular activities for professional development and improving our financial status.


1. Executive Committee 2000 - 2002

The elected executive committee for the term 2000 - 2002 were:

President -Audrey Colliver
Vice-President -Sharmila Ambrose
Secretary -Shoba Sharma
Asst. Secretary -Ngiow Jen Sen
Treasurer -Jennifer Peters
Committee Members
-Pamela Thomas Joseph
-Tye Wuey Ping
Internal Auditors
-Shireen Ismail
-Cheng Ying Teo

Due to the resignation of the Secretary, a reshuffle of the Executive Committee was necessary and a new person was appointed to the Committee.

President -Audrey Colliver
Vice-President -Sharmila Ambrose
Secretary -Ngiow Jen Sen
Asst. Secretary -Pamela Thomas Joseph
Treasurer -Jennifer Peters
Committee Members
-Mazwin Omar, appointed on 16th Decemberrr 2001
-Tye Wuey Ping


2. Administrative Issues

We continue to stress the importance of good record keeping ensuring 'continuity' in the policies and activities of our professional organization.

Instead of waiting for meetings, the Executive Committee has embraced the new technology and has been communicating through e-mail. This has resulted in faster decision making and quicker response.

Due to the increase in members, it is difficult to respond to individual requests when they affect the whole membership. We urge all members to present their requests, suggestions and ideas during general meetings so that the majority can discuss them before a decision is made. Members, who are not able to attend, are requested to nominate a member to bring up their issues. The response will be recorded in the minutes of the meeting.


3. Membership

Throughout the year, the Executive Committee has focused on increasing the membership of the professional body. The Executive Committee has implemented the decision by members to reduce the membership fees. The revised fee structure is as follows:

Ordinary Members RM 50
Associate Members RM 70
Student Members RM 10
Registration RM 50 (first year of registration or following a lapse of one year membership)

It is very encouraging to note that the current membership stands at 27 Ordinary Members, 2 Associate Members and 38 Student Members.

In an effort to welcome potential members,invitation letters has been sent out to UKM lecturers and past UKM graduates who have yet to join as members of MASH.

In a further effort to encourage membership, the membership forms have been revised to simplify the application process. The new forms have also enabled faster processing of membership applications. There are currently 3 membership forms:

a. Qualifications obtained in Malaysia
b. Qualifications obtained overseas
c. Student membership

A form has been designed and will be sent out to members twice a year to update their information in the Membership Directory. The deadlines for receipt of these biannual updates are mid June and December every year.

We wish to thank all our members who have kindly donated their excess fees paid prior to the revision of the fees schedule. This money has been used to sponsor 20 students memberships and the Student Awards and gifts.


4. Public Education/Awareness

Following the decision of our members to send letters about MASH to all relevant organizations every 2 years, the committee drew up a list of targeted organizations. Due to the volume of work involved, it was decided that we would send them out in stages:

a. Overseas professional organizations
b. Government agencies
c. Local Non-government agencies
d. Agencies overseas
e. Local related organizations

The committee has completed section (a). Please refer to No 11.

We have been involved in a number of public awareness/relations events this year:

a. On the 19th of November 2000, Tye Wuey Ping and Ngiow Jen Sen represented MASH at the YMCA Deaf Awareness Week (14) at the YMCA. Posters were put up for exhibition.

b. A talk was presented to participants at Selayang Hospital on 21/8/2000 on MASH the professional organization and management of speech, language and hearing problems.

c. MASH was represented by Audrey at the Bar Council meeting on 14/10/2000 to discuss the memorandum on changes to the current Education Act organized by the Bar Council Law Reform Committee.

d. Tye Wuey Ping represented MASH in a talk on career opportunities in Speech Language Pathology and Audiology to students at the Career Awareness Week at UKM's KL campus on 13/01/2001

e. Sharmila represented MASH at the Stroke Awareness Week organized by the National Stroke Association of Malaysia week on 7/9/2000.

Mazwin and I represented MASH at the Majlis Dialog Kesihatan 2001 with a memorandum. This was the first year we were included with the Professional Bodies. We submitted a memorandum that highlighted the following issues:

We are enthusiastic that the Ministry of Health (Health Education Division) has agreed to our proposal to jointly produce brochures on the different speech, language and hearing disorders. These brochures will be made available to all the hospitals and health centers in the country. It is necessary to form a Working Party to look into compiling these brochures before they are presented to the Ministry of Health.

We continue to respond to relevant articles in the newspaper:

a. We have written to Ruth Liew a newspaper columnist in The Star of the existence of the professional body representing slp and audios. She has been giving advice to parents on a number of issues on parenting. Recent articles have featured parents of children with speech, language and hearing problems.

b. An article in The New Straits Times written by a concerned mother highlighted the paucity of speech-language pathologists in the country. Our response to this letter was printed.

It was disappointing that to date only 3 articles have been printed in The Sun newspaper. Some members were late in sending their articles and did so after several reminders. Others informed us after a long delay that they were not able to complete their articles. This resulted in considerable delays as other members had to be requested to write these articles.

The Berita Harian newspaper has agreed to publish these same articles in Bahasa Malaysia. These are currently being translated by Shahrina and other student members. Members who have submitted their articles are also requested to submit suitable pictures or diagrams to go with their articles.


5. Public Relations

A request was received from NASOM (National Autistic Society of Malaysia) to provide speech therapy services. Our members decided that being a professional body we should not be providing services. We have advised them to employ a full time speech-language pathologist. In addition, we have agreed to provide them with our membership directory so parents can contact individual therapists.

The MASH website has finally been launched through the sole effort of our member Ngiow Jen Sen. It is encouraging to note that Malaysian students currently pursuing their degrees overseas have contacted us through our website. They were previously unaware of the existence of the professional body in Malaysia. We have also received a request from a parent asking for information on speech therapy services. The focus for the coming year will be to update the website and add to the available current information. We welcome active volunteers for this project.

MASH is currently listed in the Caroline Bowen website in her Asia page http://members.tripod.com/Caroline_Bowen/Asia.htm


6. Professional Issues

It has been brought to our attention that some members who provide private therapy services do not issue their clients with receipts. We strongly advise all our members to issue receipts and adhere to the guidelines set by the government regarding business practices.


7. Publications

We have produced a brochure on the history and objectives of the Malaysian Association of Speech and Hearing.

We are proud to announce the revival of the MASH bulletin re named 'Within Earshot'. Melissa Peters has been appointed the Advisor cum Editor. Basya, Azmarul and Mawarni have volunteered to be sub-editors.


8. Policy Development

The Guidelines of Practice for speech and language pathologists adapted from 'Communicating Quality' by the Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists (UK) guidelines has been approved by members following a meeting held on 21st October 2000. The final changes have been sent to the RCSLT (UK) for their approval.

Guidelines of Practice for Audiologists will be drafted by a Working party comprising the following members:

Tan Cheng Seng, Mazwin Omar, Ngiow Jen Sen and Rafidah Mazlan.

The criterion for Honorary Membership has still not been drafted . We would like to appoint new members to this working party. It is hoped that the criteria will be ready by the next Annual General Meeting so that nominations can be made.


9. Finance

We currently have two fixed deposits with the Perwira Affin bank. Further financial details can be found in the Treasurer's Report.

In the coming year, the committee will continue to explore other avenues of income. We have made contact with Mr Ian Franklin of Speechmark (previously Winslow Press). He has expressed interest in meeting with us on his next trip to Malaysia at the end of 2001. We will look into the possibility of sponsorship for a yearly student award, study awards, membership packs and discounts on products for our members.


10. Continuing Professional Development

Professional development does not only entail keeping up to date with the latest research but also involving oneself in the professional body. Speech Pathology Australia in their position paper in May 1994 on Competency Based Occupational Standards For Speech Pathologists - Base Grade Level advises that 'contact with other speech pathologists and participation in a professional network' is one way of extending your knowledge base. We urge all members to participate in the activities of the professional body.

The Asian Speech and Hearing Conference targeted for 2002 seems too ambitious with the disappointing level of commitment shown by our members. Furthermore, we have recently seen an announcement by the professional organization in Taiwan for the Asia-Pacific Speech and Hearing Conference in November 2002.

We have been in contact with the Hanen organization in Canada who have expressed an interest to hold a certification workshop in Malaysia in November 2002. The cost per participant including materials is US$475 to US$525.We hope to include speech-language pathologists in the region and hold a subsequent training session for teachers thereby reducing the cost for our members.


11. Working with government agencies

We are currently working with different divisions of the Ministry of Health:

a. Family Health Development Division
b. Division of Health Education
c. Pharmaceutical Services Division
d. Development of Medical Services



12. International Relations

We have sent letters to professional organizations overseas informing them of MASH and our desire to establish formal links with them. We have sent letters to Canada, US, Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Singapore, Korea, Taiwan, China, Indonesia, Philippines, Hong Kong Japan and the International Association of Logopedics and Phoniatrics based in the US. To date, we have received replies from the Royal College of Speech Therapist (UK) and the American Academy of Audiology informing us that they would bring our request up at their next meeting.

A request was received from the International Commission of Healthcare Professions based in the US regarding the profession in Malaysia.


13. Student Affairs

To increase student participation in the professional body, a Student Wing has been formed. Guidelines have been drawn up on the responsibilities of the Student Committee. We have also identified a list of projects/activities in which they will be able to actively participate. The Executive Committee will focus on strengthening the student wing and improving communication between the Executive Committee and student Committee. Cik Mazwin Omar has been appointed Student Advisor.

The following 4 MASH Student Awards have been initiated for the best clinical practicum and best thesis.

Best Clinical Practicum (Speech Language Pathology)
Best Clinical Practicum (Audiology)
Best Thesis (Speech Language Pathology)
Best Thesis (Audiology)

These awards will be presented on a yearly basis to local students pursuing studies in recognized programs in the fields of speech-language pathology and audiology.

This year we are proud to announce the following recipients of the awards.

Best Thesis (Speech Language Pathology) - Yoom Wai Lam
Best Thesis (Audiology) - Loo Hooi Yin
Best Clinical Practicum (Speech Language Pathology) - Basyariatul
Best Clinical Practicum (Audiology) - Nor Haniza Abdul Wahat

We wish them the best of luck in their new jobs and hope they continue to excel in their chosen profession.


Audrey Colliver
President
June 2001