Dr. Cheryll Didi Nellie Obra, chair  of the CHS Department of Physical Therapy (PT), is the first MMSU faculty to become one of the five newly-elected directors of the Philippine Physical Therapy Association (PPTA) Inc.

The election results from the combined online and in-person voting were released during the PPTA  general assembly on February 24 at the Metropolitan Medical Center – College of Arts, Science and Technology in Manila.

Online voting was held from February 3-21 while the in-person voting was conducted during the assembly.

“I am really happy because now I can serve my fellows more in advancing the PT profession,” Dr. Obra said, adding that “it was unexpected because most of the elected national officers and directors in the previous years were from the national capital region.”

As one of the PPTA directors, Dr. Obra said she will capacitate the provincial members and chapters of the organization, advocate the inclusion of PT in health insurance coverage, redefine the image of the profession, enrich the role of PTs (educator, researcher, community worker, manager, and clinician), and establish PPTA Journal.

Prior to this, Dr. Obra became the secretary of the PPTA-Ilocos Chapter in 2016 and a lifetime member of the PTs’ professional organization. She and the other national directors and officers of the organization will serve for one year.

PPTA, Inc. is accredited by the Professional Regulation Commission and a member of the World Confederation for Physical Therapy, as well as the Asian Confederation of Physical Therapy.

Founded on December 8, 1964, PPTA has served for the improvement of the delivery of PT services in the Philippines by advancing the cause of the profession.