Physiotherapy – The Best Career Option For Me

Being an advocate of good health and fitness, physiotherapy excites me as a career option. For me life is at its best when u can make a difference to somebody else life and being a physiotherapist can give me this opportunity, Physiotherapy helps those who are in pain and can make invaluable changes to a person's quality of life. I saw its immense value few years back when my mother had a knee cap dislocation while running on a treadmill and was not able to walk. We took her to an orthopaedic where she was diagnosed by osteoarthritis, and doctor referred her to physiotherapist. That was my first time hearing the word “physiotherapy”. The physiotherapist used various methods to relieve her pain and help to walk again properly. I realised that physiotherapy can help repair damage by speeding up the healing process, without much use of oral medicines. This intrigued and motivated me to start thinking about the possibility of becoming a physiotherapist.

Subsequently, I did some research work and I discovered that contrary to the popular belief physiotherapy isn’t’ limited to rehab of sporting injuries and back pain, but it can be used in situation from pregnancy to many neurological problems and everything in between. I also understood that Physiotherapy, to be specific, is an all rounded treatment that advocates for the use of non-invasive and non-surgical procedures to assist the rehabilitation and restoring body systems the neuromuscular, musculoskeletal, cardiovascular and respiratory system. Away from academic work, sports has always been a major social interest for me. I have been a member of the school netball, basketball and football teams since the beginning of secondary school. I have participated in various inter-school tournaments in Hong Kong. Besides just being fun, sports improved my self-esteem, taught me to fight back from setbacks, relax, work better with team members – all these helped me balance my school life with other things going around me. I also have seen a few of injuries while playing, some of them had to refer to the team physiotherapist that weighed on me and made me realised the importance of physiotherapy and reaffirmed my interest in this profession.

In my secondary school, I was a member of the student council in Year 7 and 8. This gave me a position of responsibility and helped me develop strong interpersonal and leadership skills. I organised a multicultural dance club at school for learning about different dance forms allowing the students to express their emotions, have fun and gain muscle strength. To gain practical experience, I volunteered in a NGO for autism and cerebral palsy. I assisted the staff with daily routines like walking, sitting and eating. I shadowed the speech therapist and physiotherapist who helped the kids develop vocational skills, motor skills through exercise, massage and wide range of other methods.

Although the progress and results was very slow but the physiotherapist did not get discouraged and persisted day after day. I could see hope and optimism in the eyes of many kids after the sessions. I could see that these patients could not be fully cured patients and the physio therapist told me that main goal is to foster independence by improving functional mobility of these patients. I also assisted with them to teach and counsel the parents how they can keep their child’s muscles strong and joints flexible. Even explained them that simple games like clapping, splashing in bath tub, dancing with parents is beneficial to them. This experience taught me how to collaborate and counsel patients and their family member. I have realised that physiotherapy goes a long way to obliterating suffering and provides hope of rehabilitation for disability or problem caused by physical, brain and nervous system disorders. It helps people recover and re-establish livelihood and is the something I can have faith in, and I must conclude my best way forward to achieve purpose in life. My personal experiences and attributes have led me to believe that I would be well suited to a career in physiotherapy and I am eager to take this desire to the next level.