Finally entering fourth year and what better way to start than going rural!
I'm excited to be back on prac again except this time I'm experiencing a tingling of nervousness of living away from home without the support of close relatives and friends - especially if I experience one of 'those days' on prac.
I've got my bag packed, uniform washed/ironed, shoes shined and namebadge tucked away safely - let's hope I don't forget to pack my toothbrush!
I just had a chat to my supervisor yesterday about my placement and she's calmed my nerves somewhat and given me some direction on what to look at prior to commencing on Monday. We've discussed and I've organised transportation/parking so that's one stressful situation out of the way. When I arrive in Bunbury on Sunday, I'm planning to drive from my residence to the hospital to minimise getting lost on the first day!
I've been told to expect plenty of THR and TKR which is great because I spent lots of time doing acute rehab treatments with these sort of patients last year! Hopefully I've retained some knowledge! I think I'll be working in a variety of wards as well as seeing patients in the outpatient department, rehab classes, hydro pool and possibly some home visits.
With this placement I'm keen on seeing the whole spectrum of patients in the hospital before I'm sent off to my next round of pracs where the patients will be generally more specific to either neuro, musculoskeletal or cardio. This has made studying prior to this prac difficult though as there is A LOT to cover! I've been told to do gero-cardio revision as well as musculo and ortho.
This year I expect to be less spoonfed by my supervisors/co-workers as I'm a big grown up fourth year student now! So from day 1 I may be seeing patients as their physio and not just observing initially like I have every other year. This scares me a little as I learn a lot more by first observing and then having a go. I'm crossing my fingers that i won't just be chucked straight into the deep end... although if I am I'm sure it'll be a great -and fast- learning experience.
I know there are two previous Notre Dame graduates currently working at the hospital so it'll be awesome to see some old friendly faces. On the other hand, I'm a bit apprehensive of the expectations these graduates and my supervisors will have on me. I know I've learnt all my techniques/tests/theories/exercises over the last three years but will I be able to put my knowledge actually into action when confronted by the patient/supervisor? Performance anxiety is one of my biggest concerns!
As this is my rural placement, I'm wondering how this facility will run differently to my last hospital placement. Will I need to act or treat patients differently? I'm guessing that their goals/aims are going to be slightly different to those patients who live in a busy city but my location isn't actually country/desert rural so maybe there will be much more similarities with the 'big city' patients and these 'little city' ones.
I'm keen to try out the home visits lined up as this will definitely be a new experience for me! Also, speaking to other students who have been to this placement, I may have to oppurtunity to observe more operations!
Other concerns for me are my ability to take subjectives/objectives, give accurate and fast handovers and see patients on my own. These will be my personal goals for self improvement for this year/placement.
I'll looking forward to heading down south and experienceing life working as a physio away from home. This prac is going to be the starting block for a great year of learning and developing myself into an ace physio!
I'm REALLY PUMPED AND EXCITED!
xx Dori
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