Physiotherapy Careers

What does a physiotherapist do? | |

Physiotherapists work with a variety of patients including physically disabled children, pre/post natal women, sportsmen and women, industrial employees, hospital in and out patients and people within the community.

Tasks can include:

• helping patients recover from accident, illness or injury
• organising physical exercise sessions
• providing massages
• supervising specialist therapies such as hydrotherapy, electrotherapy and aromatherapy
• collecting statistics

Relevant experience gained via voluntary work, placements or through employment as a physiotherapy assistant is very beneficial. Jobs are advertised in national newspapers and specialist publications such as Frontline, Physiotherapy Journal and their respective websites.

To qualify as a state registered physiotherapist you will need an NHS approved physiotherapy degree and registered membership of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy.

For non-physiotherapy graduates a degree in life or sports sciences can be helpful as there is strong competition for course places.

• Good time management
• The ability to build a rapport with patients from a variety of backgrounds and communicate with their relatives and carers
• Tolerance and patience
• Good physical health and fitness
• Interpersonal skills