Throughout every clinic that’s part of Alliance, every one of our clinic instructors (CIs) can remember what it was like to be in their rotations. Some experiences were more memorable than others, for sure. One common theme I think many would agree on would be that we learned so much because we were finally able to connect the dots.
Now that we’re on the other side of that experience as instructors, we continue to learn from our students and enjoy watching them make the same connections we made during that time. I feel confident in speaking for many of our CIs when I say that we are always excited to see students at this stage who are past the point of choosing good vs. bad decisions and can move on to turning their good decisions into better ones, and then those better ones into their best ones.
All that to say, your student rotations are a very important part of your development as a clinician, and it’s something we take seriously at every partner clinic within Alliance. We want you to feel prepared whether you’re getting ready for a rotation at one of our partners or another outpatient PT clinic, so here’s what I would say is a pretty good estimate of what you’ll be doing when you start a rotation.
The First Week
Your first week isn’t too different than your first week in grad school. There is a “feeling out” process that usually comes with more personal questions than clinical ones, which we hope is a nice break from the norm. We want to understand how you learn best so we can change what we do to accommodate you. For instance, some love being thrown in and others are happy standing by.
Usually, your first week involves shadowing and taking over as a scribe so you can get used to the system we’re using. We do our best to explain the “why” behind things so by the 5th or 6th time you see or hear it, it starts to stick.
One thing you’ll quickly learn is that we’ve all developed specific things that work for our clinics. Certain phrases, flows, and quirks come out and hopefully we’re able to explain how we got to that point and why we do things that way.
I tell my students all the time that there is something to be learned from everyone you work with and hopefully you learn more of what to do than what not to do, but you’ll get some of both. We, of course, don’t want you to make the same mistakes we made but we also know you have to because a little friction feeds development.
The Second Week
After the first few days we start to figure out what we think would be the best place for you to start. During lunches or before/after work we’ll talk a little about what’s coming up and what you’re comfortable with. I usually give you some ideas of phrases to use if you get stuck like “can you show me first what you had in mind?” I am always encouraging students that it’s not a sign of weakness when you ask your instructor a question, but in fact more the opposite. Most patients like to see that if you get stuck, you’re willing to go and ask. It makes them feel confident you’re not fully making things up as you go.
At the end of each day we try and wrap up, talk about what you thought was interesting and go over some questions. One thing I’ve heard students say consistently is that they were planning on 40 hours/week but didn’t consider the extra time at lunch and before or after work. I now stick it in my welcome email to gently remind you to plan for extra time each day outside of the 40 patient hours.
The Regularly Scheduled Rotation
Once we get a little comfortable, we start turning more and more over to you. We want you have cases that are interesting, mixed in with some that we plan will go smoothly. We try and have you follow people you’ve helped eval, so you can see their progress. It gives us a chance to discuss what went as planned and what looked different than you expected.
One of the hardest parts is estimating time frame. We learn tissue healing times in school, but you learn quickly that healing varies tremendously, especially when you take in all the other factors.
We want you to get comfortable quickly at the clinic and we also want you to be comfortable being a little uncomfortable to help you learn. It feels slow when you’re in the day-to-day, but you end up on the other side of the table before you know it.
And that’s the advice I have for anyone curious about their upcoming rotation, whether you’re nervous or excited. I hope it’s been helpful, and if you’re still looking for opportunities, check out our Partners to see if we have any clinics near you that might have an opening.
Ryan, DPT, Clinic Director, is a clinic instructor for our partner brand SSOR. He is also an Alliance Circle of Excellence member, being recognized as our Clinical Instructor of the Year.
