Physiotherapy - MSci drafted

Program Overview

Course overview

As a physiotherapist you will use physical approaches to strengthen and maintain people's physical, psychological, and social wellbeing, optimising their general health and helping to prevent illness. Physiotherapy at Keele provides you with an exceptional breadth of theoretical knowledge and practical experience to enable you to deliver high quality patient centred care.

Essential physiotherapy skills

This innovative course has been carefully designed to reflect physiotherapy in the 21st century and is flexible and future proof to accommodate the changing demands of health and social care, and the profession globally. You will develop the required competencies and clinical skills, which are underpinned by evidence to enable you to deliver high quality, safe and effective care that meets the needs of patients.

You will improve your understanding of anatomy, physiology and movement science including basic therapeutic handling and the fundamentals of physiotherapy practice. You will study modules that focus on common conditions associated with the cardiovascular, respiratory, musculoskeletal, and neurological systems. Throughout the programme you will explore the effects of acute critical illness and the deteriorating patient, as well as studying core themes such as pharmacology, hydrotherapy, assistive technology, orthotics and neuropsychology.

The course explores concepts of physical rehabilitation, functioning and disability and investigates the impact of disability and how to restore function to individuals with specific conditions such as diabetes mellitus and heart disease.

You will undertake practical sessions within our Anatomy Suite where you will analyse and handle real anatomy prosections to enhance your understanding of the human body.

You will learn the required patient assessment techniques, including those who may have complex rehabilitation needs to improve your clinical decision making and analytical abilities. This will enable you to propose effective management strategies for patients in a well-informed and confident manner. You will benefit from specific modules which aim to enable you to establish your communication skills so you can become confident in your professional interactions as a physiotherapist. As a physiotherapist you will need to be able to communicate with a range of patients, carers, family members and fellow clinicians.

Modules to enhance your research and critical thinking competencies are embedded throughout the programme. We put a strong emphasis on the role of evidence and using it to support physiotherapy best practice. The advantage of a fourth year of study is that it offers you the flexibility to explore specialist areas of practice in areas such as musculoskeletal and neurological.

Physiotherapist’s play a key role in promoting health and preventing illness and you’ll gain a solid understanding of the factors that can impact on people’s health and wellbeing.

Inter-professional learning is a key element in your growth as a professional physiotherapist and studying alongside students from other healthcare occupations reflects your future working environment. We give you the skills not just to become a physiotherapist but to become effective future educators and teachers through specific modules that concentrate on learning and teaching.

Physiotherapy Clinical Experience

Clinical practice is a core element of the programme. Exposure to a range of clinical environments will enable you to build your confidence. This practical, authentic, hands-on experience ensures you are able to graduate with the required skills and competencies to practice and deliver high quality patient care.

There are placement opportunities to complete over 1380 hours of practice throughout the programme. Our dedicated Clinical Education Team will source appropriate placements in a wide variety of settings and provide additional support during your placements.

We offer a wide range of diverse opportunities to gain practical physiotherapy experience supporting people of all ages with different conditions. You will be exposed to various clinical settings that may include working with critically ill patients within the NHS, individuals injured at work, charities and the private sector, as well as supporting rugby and football clubs. Most of your placements take place in the West Midlands area, although placements for some specialist areas of physiotherapy may require you to travel further afield.

There are opportunities to apply for international electives so you can study abroad, depending on the current global pandemic situation.

Rehabilitation and physiotherapy clinic

Helping to bridge the gap between what you learn in the lecture theatre and clinical placement is our on-campus physiotherapy and rehabilitation clinic where you can get involved and observe the treatment of patients. The clinic offers ‘hands on’ treatments for a wide range of common musculoskeletal injuries.

Our expertise

Teaching is undertaken by highly skilled, highly qualified, and knowledgeable staff, some of whom are nationally and internationally recognised experts in their field. Many of our academic staff are active researchers, and physiotherapists teaching on the course are all registered with the Health and Care Professions Council.

Student support

We provide a supportive and inclusive learning environment for you during your physiotherapy course. You will be allocated an academic mentor at the beginning of your course who can give advice and guidance. Also during your first year you will be offered a student mentor. Supervision whilst you are undertaking your clinical placements is undertaken by practice educators.

Based within our faculty is a Student Experience and Support team who have a member of the team who is dedicated to the School of Allied Health Professions. As part of Keele’s student services, they work closely with teams across Keele so you can easily access the support you need.

There is peer support and additional help is available from the School's Disability Liaison Officer who provides an additional layer of support for all students, particularly for those who have special learning needs.

You will have access to a mixture of advice and support services at Keele which include;

Program Outline

Modules

Your future career

95% of our students are in employment or further study within 15 months of finishing their studies (HESA Graduate Outcomes, 2019/20)

Graduating from this MSci programme with master's level skills in physiotherapy will give you a competitive edge to help get your career off to a flying start.

The course enables you to go on to work as an autonomous professional physiotherapist in a range of varied careers nationally and internationally. This includes the NHS, private sector, occupational health, and sport. The research knowledge you will acquire also gives you the potential to go on to clinical and research careers.

Enhance your employability

Keele’s Careers and Employability team (Shortlisted for Best University Careers Employment Service - National Undergraduate Employability Awards, 2021), offers a variety of personal and career development opportunities to enhance your employability.

From mock interviews, careers guidance and CV advice, to careers fairs, alumni mentoring and networking events, along with helping you find part-time and graduate employment - the team will support you throughout your studies and beyond.

Find out more about our careers and employability services, including career planning, alumni mentoring, jobs, internships, starting your own business and much more.

Teaching, learning and assessment

Key elements of physiotherapy are taught over four years and we use a variety of learning and teaching methods depending on the subject matter and level of the module. You will be taught on campus at Keele University and in clinical environments and teaching is designed to integrate university learning and learning undertaken in practice settings.

You will develop your clinical skills in small groups, depending on the subject matter. In practice settings you will work with designated practice educators and receive support from visiting tutors from the School.

In your programme you will sometimes be expected to role play and engage in simulated clinical scenarios with other students, such as the practice and observation of practical skills in physical contact with other students. For some specific practices, this may necessitate modification of dress - e.g., to shorts and t-shirt.  These activities will be conducted in a professional, safe,  respectful and culturally sensitive way, under the supervision of academic staff, according to a defined protocol.

Our teaching methods include:

Assessment

To track your progress through this integrated masters course we use a variety of methods to reflect the range of knowledge and skills you will develop including: