Medical Respiratory Placement Preparation

Published: 29/01/2021

Updated: 20/04/2023

Here are guest contributor’s (Jack’s) medical respiratory placement top tips. I have include my own additional tips and recommended resources for preparation.

1.      Get stuck in

It can be daunting, going onto a respiratory ward, especially if you have not had much ward experience (like me). As with all placements, getting stuck in early can often give a confidence boost which will male the remainder of the placement more enjoyable. It also shows your educator that you have interest which will get you better marks

2.      Don’t be afraid to ask questions or clarify things

Remember there are no stupid questions

3.      Practice auscultations and bring your own stethoscope

It makes it so much easier with you own stethoscope and save time. Auscultations take time to learn different sounds so test on family and friends so you can pick up the differences

4.      Prepare to look up different medical conditions and medication

After each day there would be new terms and medications that I would not know. It is best to look these up either on the ward or back at home (on bnf website) as it makes it easier returning to patients. I (Grace) have a section at the back of my notebook to note things to look up in.

5.      Don’t be afraid to clarify what has been written in the notes

Doctor’s writing is shocking and it takes time to adjust to this. So don’t be afraid to clarify with other staff.

6.      Top things to pre-read and practice

• Respiratory conditions such as asthma, COPD, bronchiectasis, pulmonary embolism – these will crop up lots so it’s useful to know a bit about them. (Website Author) I would suggest noting down their presentation, symptoms and treatments. 
• Practice ACBT routine – ACBT is the foundation of respiratory treatment so having refreshed a good routine will give you a jump start for treatment

7.      Manual handling practice comes in hand so try to remember the equipment available to you to aid patients transfers e.g. hoists, rollator frames and Sara Steadies

8.      Don’t try to learn every medical condition under the sun, you will be exposed to them on placement and it will make it easier to learn

9.      Try to think about discharge planning when seeing a patient

Sometimes where you think their best destination is isn’t where they want to go. So it is important to have that conversation with your patient

10.   Enjoy yourself!

I was initially sceptical about how much I would enjoy respiratory but it is actually the opposite. It is satisfying placement that will make you feel valued in the team. You get to really develop your skills in assessment and feel like a qualified physio. You also learn lots of new medical terms which make you feel smarter (or it did for me). And you get to work in a large team which helps to understand different roles in the MDT.

Recommended resources

·        Cardiorespiratory physiotherapy Adults and Paediatrics by Elanor Main and Linda Denehy

·        Chest X-rays made easy by Jonathan Corne & Maruti Kumaran Purchase link 

·        BNF (online version) https://bnf.nice.org.uk/

·        Respiratory Physiotherapy: an on-call survival guide edited by Beverly Harden

·        British Thoracic Society Guidelines: https://www.brit-thoracic.org.uk/quality-improvement/guidelines/

·        Clinical Physio webinar handbooks: https://www.clinicalphysio.com/shop/ 

·        Respiratory Physiotherapy Pocketbook by Jane Cross and Mary Ann Broad Amazon link

        The Physiotherapist’s Pocketbook by Karen Kenyon and Jonathan Kenyon