Final entry

WOW i cannot believe five weeks is over.
I thoroughly enjoyed every moment i spent at RPH in ward 8 and inpatient orthopaedics. I feel as though i was very lucky to have a young and vibrant physiotherapist as my supervisor because she made our time enjoyable and made me aware of how physiotherapy can be such a rewarding and enjoyable profession.
I feel as though the most valuable skill i have learnt as the result of the placement is how to effectively communicate with patients and to develop rapport. I feel this is so important because it makes your time more enjoyable, interesting and has massive implications on your assessment and treatment of patients.
Secondly i think i have been very lucky to participate in this placement because i feel very orientated to take on my next placement in a hospital/ orthopaedics. I feel confident with completing legible, correct soapier patient notes; Assessing patients and taking appropriate objective measures to monitor progress; Developing appropriate treatment based on patient goals and problem list; communicating with staff and i suppose negotiating the hospital environment.
Finally i think it has been very beneficial to my clinical reasoning because i have been having to work independently with patients and always consider WHY i am doing something and the implications it might have. Working with some multi trauma and orthopaedic patients really puts you on the spot and helps to develop my clinical reasoning
Although 5 weeks is a fairly long time i felt as though i could have made so much more out of the placement if i put more time/effort into reflecting on my own work, especially in regards to treatment and assessment of the patient. I felt very stressed towards the commencement of the placement affecting the time i had to spend time on extra reflections.
Overall i really enjoyed this placement and being a physiotherapist.