KG College of Physiotherapy, Coimbatore, Principal: Dr. Manoj Abraham Interview

Dr. Manoj Abraham has been working as the Principal of KG College of Physiotherapy, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. He has done BPT, MPT and PhD as part of his academics and is a proactive, self-motivated Physiotherapist. He has an amazing 20 years of Clinical, Teaching, Research, Coordination and Mentoring experience. He has worked in various positions in all these sectors and has been associated with NGOs and Government agencies for planning, budgeting, implementation and follow-up of community rehabilitation programmes. In addition to this, he is involved in interdepartmental and inter departmental research activities at KG College of Pharmacy.

Being a Principal of KG College of Physiotherapy, what are your responsibilities towards the students?

"Ensuring discipline among students and employment oriented education for them is my responsibility"

As a Principal of KG College, the ambiance of my responsibilities is very vast and I am accountable to maintain the disciplined environment in college. And providing the finest quality and employment oriented education to students, establishing good research facilities in college and encouraging students to publish research papers also comes under the scope of my responsibilities.

How do you establish healthy relations with the students and fellow faculty?

"By offering them an open, friendly and trustworthy communication environment"

I believe transparent communication is very important to maintain a cordial relationship with everyone, be it your students or fellow colleagues. Hence, I follow the same policy in my institute too and I have given an open and trustworthy communication ambiance to them. Also, I don't pressurize my students only because I know co-curricular activities are equally important for them. 

How do you introduce a practical and industry oriented approach towards subjects?

"By sending our students in hospitals and rehabilitation centres to give them some hands on experience"

We send our students for clinical postings not only in KG Hospital, but in rehabilitation centres with whom we have collaborated so that our students can get more practical exposure of working in a real time scenarios. 

Which best practices are offered by your department to the students to help them gain necessary skills?

"Events like physio camps, conferences, seminars and workshops are conducted from time to time"

Our college keeps organizing physio camps in our college to give a hands-on experience to them so that they can practically test whatever they have learned in classrooms. In addition to this, hospital specific training and internships to develop necessary skills are offered by us. And last but not the least, webinars, conferences, and in house workshops are arranged as and when needed where we invite eminent industry experts and leaders to have interactive sessions with our students and staff members.

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How does your department prepare students for higher education and placement?

"Most of our students enroll in our college PG programs itself instead of going outside"

As we offer a diverse range of Post Graduation courses along with PhD degrees in our college, hence most of our students end up finishing their Post Graduation in our college itself. And since I have practiced in Malaysia for quite some time, I provide my full support and counseling to those students who want to do a job or pursue higher studies outside the country. In addition to all this, personality development and placement oriented training to our students. 

How do you prepare your students to cope up with the outside competitive world?

"By motivating them to believe in their skills and providing appropriate training as per their need"

I always motivate my students to not compare their individuality with anyone as each of them are unique and special in their own way and have some good qualities which can be enhanced by our proper support and guidance. Hence, I keep encouraging them to upskill themselves and give more focus on practical learning as per ever changing industry requirements and developments. Apart from this, I still give my students hands-on training so that they can give primary treatment to patients in absence of machines also.

Which extracurricular activities are organized in college to enhance the skills of students?

"Sports events, cultural fests including dancing, singing or acting are arranged by us regularly"

We firmly believe that co-curricular activities are equally important for students as academics are. Hence a wide variety of co-curricular activities ranging from indoor and outdoor sports activities, cultural fests, singing, dancing and many other competitive tasks are organized by us regularly to give a perfect platform to our students to showcase their skills and hidden talents and their active participation in these activities boost their confidence too and help them to face this world with more courage.

When you joined this college, what was your vision for it and how are you trying to achieve the same?

"My objective was to develop each department of the college in same but best way possible"

When I joined KG College of Physiotherapy, my aim was to develop each department of the college in the best possible way using my past experiences and knowledge. Because prior to this college, the places I have worked at gave preferences to few departments only and I simply wanted to change that by trying things out of my comfort zone. And to achieve my goal, I have created a competitive atmosphere in our college for the purpose of upskilling everyone who all are working for us and working with us. 

How does your college enhance the faculty skills and prepare them as per industry standards? 

"By organizing FDPs, encouraging them to participate in seminars and publish research papers"

We always encourage our faculty members to present papers and attend seminars conducted by us and other colleges as well. And to supplement their subject knowledge, we also organize faculty development programs as and when required.

What do you see as the college’s greatest strengths and how it can be enhanced?

"Students who joins us to pursue their dreams are our biggest source of strength"

Our students are our greatest pillars of strength because they are the one whose academic performance and results directly affect the reputation and value of our college. And since they are achieving new heights of success and securing 100% marks in exams, no one could be more proud than us. Therefore, they makes us strong and helps us to stay resilient during tough times.