During my time on the level 5 assistant practitioner apprenticeship, the areas covered included reflection, professional practice, anatomy, physiology and health promotion. Taught at North Lindsey College in Scunthorpe, it was awarded by Sheffield Hallam University.
The reflection pieces involved me looking at my current practice and reflecting on what I might change, keep the same or improve on. I found there were some things to take into consideration when reflecting on practice such as the patient, the injury, and health problems.
In the anatomy and physiology module, we covered the different systems in the body such as lymphatic, muscular, respiratory, and skeletal. We also looked at the different tissues in the body and how all the systems come together for day to day body functions.
As the course is not fully focused on physiotherapy, I have learnt about the wider team within a hospital and I was able to shadow in areas I have not been before including dialysis, stroke ward and community teams. This has boosted my knowledge of the processes within hospitals and how everyone comes together to treat patients.
Most of the modules were assessed by completing essays and presentations, with one module including an interview-style spoken exam.
Once I had completed and passed the foundation degree element of the apprenticeship I was invited to graduate at a ceremony organised by Sheffield Hallam.
My aim is to become a registered physiotherapist and I will be using this course as a stepping stone to apply for the level 6 physiotherapy apprenticeship.
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank my family, friends, colleagues and Hull University Teaching Hospitals Trust for their help and support during my time on the course.
Myth
It’s the work of the registered workforce that makes a difference to patient outcomes and service improvement We know this is not the case. Increasingly it is new and innovative support worker roles and practice that is making a big difference to patients. But we are not always showcasing support workers’ impact.
Busted
The CSP is developing some tools to promote this impact. Look out for details of these during 2020 and, in the meantime, you can share your innovations in support worker practice through the Innovations in Physiotherapy database . We’d particularly like to see more cases from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
- Robert Minter, physiotherapy assistant, Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
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