Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent)
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415. To ask the Minister for Health his plans to protect the status of the titles of physiotherapist and physical therapist; the consequences of protecting the title of physical therapist; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42570/15]

Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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426. To ask the Minister for Health his plans to prescribe the title of physical therapist as a variant of the specified title of physiotherapist after an appropriate lead-in time; if he is aware that this proposal has been recommended by the State Regulator and the Physiotherapists Registration Board and that it is also supported by the Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42629/15]

Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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441. To ask the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question Nos. 167, 175 and 198 of 19 November 2015, if he will define the terms physical therapist and physiotherapist which are not ambiguous internationally; his view of correspondence (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42764/15]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 415, 426 and 441 together.

The Physiotherapists Registration Board will soon make the necessary bye-laws under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005 to allow it to establish its register early next year. The title of physiotherapist will, as a consequence, be protected for the exclusive use of the board's registrants when the register's 2 year transitional period ends in 2018.

I am currently examining the issue of also protecting the title of physical therapist under the Act. In the rest of the English speaking world the titles of physical therapistand physiotherapistare interchangeable and their users are qualified physiotherapists. In Ireland, however, the title is used by a number of practitioners who are not physiotherapists but who are competing with physiotherapists in the private sector in the provision of musculoskeletal therapies.

Earlier this year, having consulted with the Health and Social Care Professionals Council, I wrote to a number of relevant organisations including the Physiotherapists Registration Board and the Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists, regarding my proposal to protect the title of physical therapist as a variant of the title of physiotherapist and invited them to submit their views. Protecting the title of physical therapistin this way would mean that practitioners who are currently using this title and are not registered as physiotherapists would not be entitled to use the title of physical therapistwhen the regulations come into effect.

The submissions are now being examined and I expect that I will make a decision on the matter before the end of the year that ensures public protection and appropriately addresses the legitimate concerns of all parties.