Recent UTS Physiotherapy graduate Lindsey Wu tells us what it’s like to be on allocation at Sydney’s Westmead Hospital.
Physiotherapist and UTS Master of Physiotherapy alumna Lindsey Wu is currently doing a rotation at Westmead Hospital as part the competitive graduate physiotherapy allocations.
Physiotherapy allocations allow graduates to experience five different rotations in a NSW Health hospital setting over a year. There’s an application and interview process before the limited and sought-after places are awarded.
Lindsey loves that she can see the difference she makes in people’s mobility.
“I love being able to help people and see that what I’m doing day to day is making a difference in someone else’s life.”
Her work varies in the hospital.
I’m working with different kinds of people and I get the chance to find the area of physio that really resonates with me.
“We get respiratory and general patients who need mobility assessments. We see what kind of functional deficit they have or if they need some chest physio. We sometimes take them for walks, use breathing techniques or do airway clearances.”
She also gets a lot of post-op patients on her current rotation.
“Some of them have had a total knee or hip replacement. Through physiotherapy, I’ve helped to get them back on their feet and able to walk again. That’s really rewarding, just seeing people able to get around without walking aids.”
She’ll be doing her neuro rotation next.
“Working with the neurological population is something which definitely excites me.”
Doing five different rotations gives her a chance to find the best physio fit.
“I’m working with different kinds of people and I get the chance to find the area of physio that really resonates with me.”
Go into it with an open mind, be willing to learn and be passionate about physiotherapy.
It was Lindsey’s undergraduate degree that led to where she is now.
“I was really interested in the physiotherapy content that we were learning.”
At the end of her undergraduate Sport Science degree, she went straight on to do a Master of Physiotherapy at the Graduate School of Health.
“I really liked the practical nature of it. There was a lot of hands on work.”
The student to teacher ratio was also an advantage.
“We had quite a small cohort, so we were always given a lot of attention.”
But it’s people and not just content that makes a course.
“The teachers we had were lovely and always willing to lend a hand and the people I met in my course were great.”
The placements she did were a chance to apply all that practical learning and build on it through workplace experience.
“They improved my clinical reasoning skills, being able to apply a theory in a practical context, as well as my communication skills. You learn how to speak to different populations.”
Lindsey’s advice for future students is simple.
“Go into it with an open mind, be willing to learn and be passionate about physiotherapy.”
Find out more about studying Physiotherapy at UTS