Physiotherapy
The following describes the skills required for a novice physiotherapists to be able to work competently and confidently in critical care. Workforce planning should ensure that the below are included in the training and development of staff to ensure we have the necessary skills and knowledge to provide safe and high-quality patient care.
Attainment of the Shared AHP Competencies, Physiotherapy Core Competencies and EPA sign off will ensure the clinical caseload is managed by a sufficiently skilled therapist who can work independently.
It is recommended that critical care physiotherapists (especially those working in isolation) consider membership to intensive care societies such as the ACPRC critical care specialist group.
The following are useful resources in progression towards EPA sign off:
- The A-G Assessment Tool
- The ABCDE approach: Resuscitation Council UK (2021) Resuscitation guidelines
- Initial assessment and treatment with the Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Disability, Exposure (ABCDE) approach
Some of the domains within this document can be better understood by engaging with those outside your profession (ie asking a bedside nurse to explain the lines and wires, learning from the medical team regarding shift handovers, discussing with the nurse in charge which MDT meetings are most relevant for your role and contribution). See Appendix 2 for suggested MDT shadowing experiences which will aid the completion of both shared and physiotherapy domains of the C3Framework.