Making the most of your research placement
With the increasing demand of students requiring a practice placement and the variability of AHPs roles in practice, placements are adapting to take on many forms. Rising in popularity is the research placement, be that full time or split clinically. I had the pleasure of working with Matt Harrison whom at the time of writing is a University of Leicester 2nd year physiotherapy student, who has thrived on his clinical academic placement. And so I thought it was best to hand over to Matt to reflect and pass on his tips on how to make the most of your research placement.
Having a Clinical Research Placement- Matt Harrison, University of Leicester, 2nd year Physiotherapy student
Research is such a vital part of Physiotherapy and my placement has really made me realise just how important it is, especially with the Covid-19 pandemic.
I definitely think that having this experience has made me look at research differently and will help me develop as a clinician with new methods and ways of thinking.
My advice to make the most of a research placement would be to ask lots of questions, hear about all the different research projects currently undertaken, wherever you are situated, and have a practise yourself, whether that be producing your own abstract for submission, coming up with your own research questions, using statistical software, critical appraisal and understanding of data and conclusions you can draw.
To prepare for placement, I would recommend reading relevant guidelines. For example, I read the BTS guideline on pulmonary rehabilitation in adults. Also, I had a look at the Borg breathlessness and rate of perceived exertion scales. Just briefly have a look at any work you have learnt previously in that area, whether that be certain pathologies, assessments, treatments etc., I found that was really helpful.
When doing a research placement, there are challenges that you will face along the way, but if you are enthusiastic, hardworking and dedicated, I feel these are key attributes that will serve you well.
Overall, I think my take home message is that if you are researching something you are passionate about, it is very rewarding with the potential for great things.
Building the next generation of clinical academics
I feel hugely passionate about inspiring and supporting clinical academics and being able to support students to understand the importance of research and practically how this can be built into your career can really inspire the next generation of clinical academics. As Matt said, it’s not without its challenges, but rewarding for all parties and even to the wider community with dissemination. The way we conduct these placements need some thought that I will ponder for the next blog, but I wouldn’t want to take away from Matt’s insight.
