Organisation: Department of Physiotherapy, St Joseph’s Hospital
Job Title: Technical Assistant
Word Limit: Maximum 300 words per criterion. The last two is a lot less due to the subject matter
Location: St Joseph’s Hospital
Experience and skills in working rehabilitation and in hospitals
My experience in work rehabilitation hospitals preparing the work environment for therapy class
and working with patients in Rehabilitation gym, acute wards and in hydrotherapy class is
extensive and fills my passion and commitment to provide a high level patient care.
As part of my experience working as an allied health assistant student in the rehabilitation centre in
Graythwaite I would assess and evaluate physical disabilities mobilise clients and conduct group
therapy sessions. I also assisted allied health care professionals providing stroke treatment
including assisting patients to sit, stand, transfer from bed to wheelchair and visa-versa. My
experience also includes orthopaedic and cardiac rehab programs where I demonstrated the
exercises the patients need to undertake including treadmill and exercise bike.
An example is during my work in Ryde Hospital I mobilised a patient who had knee replacement
surgery with a forearm frame support. This involved assisting the patient to sit up in bed and
encouraging them to do bed exercises with a view to assisting them to walk again. This required
me to check the frames were in good condition and correctly adjusted to fit the patient. After
three days the patient announced they were able to walk with the frame without any assistance
from me and could also manage to sit up in bed from a prone position.
My experience includes designing rehabilitation plan for clients with various neurological
disorders, diseases or injuries and relieving pain by using treatment modalities such as IFT
(Interferential therapy, Ultrasound, TENS(Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation)
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
As a fully qualified physiotherapist I have demonstrated my effective communication and
interpersonal skills, and have consistent success in conveying messages. Whether it is one-on-one
communication with nursing colleagues or hospital staff, documentation of patient notes,
delivering patient/carer teaching, or speaking with a diverse range of patients, I am able to adapt
my communication style to the needs of my audience. I am a confident communicator and deliver
information in a clear, concise and articulate manner both orally and in writing. Adept at reading
my audience, I am able to alter my communication style and messages accordingly, listening to the
words and interpreting the body language of others to gauge their level of understanding and
acceptance of my points. I maintain a strong ability to build therapeutic relationships with patients
through a culturally sensitive and respectful approach to care. This includes Consulting with
physicians and other medical professionals in providing physiotherapy treatment
For example during my tenure as a physiotherapist I used my communication skills with depressed
patients and not well motivated in order to get them interested in attending the exercise classes.
This required considerable patience, empathy and my explaining the benefits of attending therapy
session on a regular basis. I actively listen and negotiate with the patients to attend as many
sessions as they can on a daily basis.
As a result the patients were able to see the advantages of regular therapy sessions and the senior
physiotherapist commended my communication skills and I have now been nominated to utilise
my communication skills with non-co-operative and less motive patients to attend therapy class.
Experience working independently and in a team
Throughout my career, I have developed exceptional skills that enable me to work independently
and effectively with colleagues and as an integral member of multidisciplinary teams. I am a strong
team member and work effectively through upholding respect for my colleagues, as well as
ensuring that I appropriately acknowledge their role relating to the care of patients. This is
demonstrated through my thorough understanding of each team member’s role, and my ability to
identify when it is necessary to call on their assistance. Regardless of my colleague’s cultural or
professional background, I ensure that when working within a team I foster an environment of
mutual trust and respect by being a strong member of the interdisciplinary team with a strong
understanding of the roles of various stakeholders.
Working independently without supervision In PSG Hospital, I would get my patient list from the
senior therapist and check the patients I need to see and in what priority. I then assess each
patient designing a treatment procedure according to the patient’s condition. Taking each patient
I would first demonstrate the exercise I wanted the patient to do until they fully understood then
would mobilise the patient with a walking aid or whatever aid was required for that patient.
Almost always the patient was comfortable and satisfied with my help and gave positive feedback
to the senior therapist.
As a team member I have an excellent appreciation of the importance of teamwork and assisting
other health professionals and performing the tasks delegated by them. I gained my work
experience in a multi-disciplinary team where the team included Physiotherapists, Occupational
therapists, Nurses, Social workers and doctors and communicated with all team members and
reported to my supervisor on daily basis. Including discussing any issues about a patient and how
they could be resolved.
Excellent manual handling skills
In my tenure as a physiotherapy professional I follow strict procedures and safe manual handling
procedures of patients. This means fully understanding the patient’s body and medical condition
and what needs to be done to assist the patient to rehabilitate without putting stress on the
patient or their body that could result in a potential injury.
For example, when mobilising a patient who underwent shoulder surgery and who needed
assistance to sit up in the bed or change from a sitting to a standing position, I took great care not
to pull the shoulder which would cause serious injury to patient. Instead I assisted the patient by
placing one of my hand at the back of the shoulder and other hand in front to support the
shoulder and then I was able to mobilise the client safely. The senior allied health assistant and
supervisor gave positive feedback on my manual handling skills. Mobilize the patient in a safe
manner
I also work on teaching the patient and their family about the importance of home exercise
programs and how these can benefit the patient long term
Physiotherapy assistant’s course or equivalent
I have a strong working knowledge of a range of relevant legislation and the AHPRA Code of
practice which governs my role. Relevant legislation includes: the Code of Professional Conduct,
the Nurses Act 1992.
Being a fully qualified as a physiotherapist I have completed a Certificate IV in Allied health
Assistance (Physiotherapy). I have also graduated with a Bachelor of Physiotherapy from DR
M.G.R. University in India
Recently I also successfully completed an Integrated Care and Management training course.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) “Integrated care is a concept bringing together
inputs, delivery, management and organization of services related to diagnosis, treatment, and
care, rehabilitation and health promotion. Integration is a means to improve services in relation to
access, quality, user satisfaction and efficiency. ”
In addition I have successfully completed Certificate IV in allied health assistance and have
excellent computer skills including Microsoft products such as Word, Excel, Outlook and
PowerPoint and have a valid first aid certificate.
I am also committed to lifelong learning and development in order to remain at the fore of my
profession
Current NSW driver’s license
I currently hold a learners permit and will be going for my driver’s licence test very shortly. I drove
when in India so it is not a case of learning to drive but simply passing the test to get my driver’s
licence.
