Last Placement Initial Entry

Last one!!! Can’t believe it!!!

I’m off to do another rural placement, but this time it’s my musculoskeletal prac. I’m a little anxious of this placement as none of my previous placements over the last 2-3 years has been musculo oriented (specifically). Most placements obviously involve your general anatomy and physiology knowledge, but it’s been a while since doing the specific assessments etc. To add to my apprehension, I’ll be seeing my own patients from day 1. This is to be expected I guess, given we are so close to becoming qualified practitioners. I hope it’s not expected though to be as fluid as a graduate, as only experience will allow that, none of which I have in this particular field.

I’m guessing I’ll see a variety of presentations on this placement, and given it’s pruning season down here (on the vineyards), there might be some tendonopathies and over use injuries of the upper limbs? As my study over the clinical prep week as indicated, there may also be a high prevalence of low back pain in the patient mix, given there is a high percentage of the population that has it at any one time.

I’ve heard positive things about the supervisor at this placement. He apparently has students year-round, and I believe has recently won an award for his contributions for doing so. I hope to make the most of such a mentor, as I’m basically a clean slate with no experience and I can only learn from such an experienced practitioner.

It will be a relief not to have to drive so far for this placement. It’s relatively close, with trips to Augusta weekly. I believe Augusta is more of a retirement location than being an industry driven locale, so again there may be an older demographic representation of Augusta patients? This might bring in a broader range of presentations related to that age group.

While I am certainly intimidated by the coming placement, I really hope to absorb as much of the experience as possible, and get comfortable with the muscluoskeletal process. I hope to work in the region eventually, and these are obviously skills I’ll need and be proficient at whichever field I work in. In comparison to my last placement, this time I’ll get to be hands on in a traditional physio way, making diagnostic calls and treatments accordingly.

I also hope to make the most of the networking opportunities during this prac. Physio is a relatively small industry as it is, and to have access to contacts and potential collegues/employers is an invaluable aspect of this final rural placement. I look forward (maybe?) to binge thrown in the deep end, and seeing how I respond to that, lets hope I come out the other end knowing more about the musculoskeletal process (and myself).