A Career in Physiotherapy
You want to pursue a career in healthcare and make a positive difference to the lives of others. You’re looking for a career that lets you work in many different settings, and perhaps follow your passion for sport? If so, working as a Physiotherapist could be your number one choice.
What is a Physiotherapist?
As a key member of a multi-disciplinary healthcare team, a Physiotherapist is a healthcare professional who works with people to help them improve their health, quality of life and wellbeing. They treat patients who have experienced an illness or injury and use rehabilitation techniques and exercises to help them heal and regain their mobility, balance, strength and independence. Physiotherapists treat patients to alleviate pain they are experiencing and can also work with them to prevent future injuries.
As registered healthcare practitioners, Physiotherapists are trained in the structure, functions and movement of the human body and help treat conditions that can affect bones, muscles, nerves, lungs and other parts of the body. They use a wide range of techniques to treat their patients, including heat treatment, physical movements, exercises, dry needling, hydrotherapy, electrotherapy and massages.
Physiotherapists can provide treatment throughout all stages of patient care including initial assessment, diagnosis, treatment, discharge, referral, rehabilitation, and management of long-term conditions. They work with people of all ages and with a variety of health conditions.
Where Does a Physiotherapist Work?
A great advantage of Physiotherapy is that it provides work in a wide variety of settings. These include clinics, private practices, hospitals, community health centres, disability services, rehabilitation clinics, aged care facilities and sports organisations.
How Do You Become a Physiotherapist in Ireland?
To work as a Physiotherapist, you need to complete a three- or four-year undergraduate degree, or a two-year MSc (Professional Qualification) in Physiotherapy, Level 9 (NQAI). Your degree studies will include a minimum of 1000 hours of clinical practice.
As well as lectures and seminars your studies will include a large and engaging practical aspect, problem-based learning, tutorials and work experience. You’ll explore your learning in action and graduate well-prepared for your career.
The following degree courses are offered in Ireland:
Bachelor of Science in Physiotherapy, University of Limerick
Master of Science in Physiotherapy (Professional Qualification), University of Limerick
Professional Master of Physiotherapy, National University of Ireland, University College Dublin
Your studies will include Physiology, Anatomy and Physiology, Biology, Biomechanics, Neuroscience, Musculoskeletal Rehabilitation and Pharmacology. You will also undertake a variety of clinical placements.
What’s Next?
As soon as you have your degree, to practice as a Physiotherapist in Ireland you must register with CORU which is the country’s multi-profession health regulator.
You can then join the Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists (ISCP). This allows you to use the title of Chartered Physiotherapist and confirms your commitment to upholding the highest standards of medical and ethical standards. As well as encouraging public confidence in your abilities, your registration gives you a competitive advantage.
What Makes a Good Physiotherapist?
As well as being physically fit, to succeed you’ll enjoy working with people and have an interest in their wellbeing. Patience, tact, empathy and sympathy will all come naturally to you. You’ll be a good listener and have strong observational and communication skills – with the ability to work at speed with accuracy. You’ll be skilful in record-keeping and report-writing, while teamwork is also crucial as you will work alongside other healthcare professionals such as Doctors, Nurses and Social Workers.
What are a Physiotherapist’s Key Responsibilities?
A Physiotherapist’s work is varied, according to where they practice – but in general you will assess each patient’s current condition, review their medical history and treat patients with various techniques. You’ll educate them on their care and health, develop comprehensive treatment and rehabilitation plans for them and mitigate chronic pain when required. You’ll also encourage patients to work with other medical professionals as part of their treatment.
Why is Physiotherapy So Rewarding?
Physiotherapists enjoy the reward of helping their patients on their journey of recovery and seeing them reach their goals. The treatment you provide can be invaluable to a person’s quality of life, even life changing. For example, Physiotherapy can be used to treat serious health conditions such as cystic fibrosis. Your work has impact, and you are making a massive contribution to society.
As ‘problem-solving work,’ Physiotherapy can be very mentally stimulating and creative, while you also get the opportunity to work with a diverse range of people.
What are my career prospects?
There are many employment opportunities available to you – with the choice of working in primary care, hospitals, private practice, rehabilitation centres and nursing homes. It’s a good idea to start in general hospitals and gain as much experience as you can before going on to specialise.
Some Physiotherapists work for professional sports teams, in business, the sport or leisure industries or as Sports Injury Specialists for the HSE or private clinics. Other areas of specialisation include Acupuncture, Women’s Health, Intellectual Disabilities, Respiratory Care, Neurology and Gerontology, Rheumatology, Paediatrics, Occupational Health and Ergonomics, Oncology and Palliative Care.
You can advance to Senior Level, Clinical Specialist and then Management.
Beyond clinical work, you can also move into educational work as well as research and leadership.
