On what’s next for the IMA, which took up the issue with the ministry and the National Medical Commission (NMC), Dr Bhanushali said, “We will have to approach the court. We are left with no other choice. We will have to do it, despite the Tamil Nadu and Kerala High Courts already issuing orders that physiotherapists cannot use ‘Dr’ as a prefix in their names.”
In her September 10 letter, DGHS, Dr Sunita Sharma, referred to the DO letter dated September 9, 2025, regarding the use of the prefix ‘Dr’ and suffix ‘PT’ by physiotherapists in India.
“Therefore, representations have been received on this matter which require further examination and deliberations. Hence, the aforesaid DO letter may be treated as withdrawn as the matter requires further examination.”
Her letter was addressed to the Chairperson of the National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professionals (NCAHP), the IMA National President and others.
The issue snowballed into a major controversy after the NCAHP’s March 23 release of the Competency-based curriculum for physiotherapy 2025 suggested that physiotherapists can use the prefix “Dr” and suffix “PT.”
