Putting healthcare in context

Physiotherapy students are taking healthcare to the community at Bubup Wilam, an Aboriginal child and family centre in Melbourne’s northern suburbs.

^{L to R: Dr Louisa Remedios and Tamara Clements}

Physiotherapy students are taking healthcare to the community at Bubup Wilam, an Aboriginal child and family centre in Melbourne’s northern suburbs.

“Bubup Wilam is a welcoming space. The children are thriving, they have a strong sense of their culture and they understand the value and strength of that culture” says Dr Louisa Remedios, Director of Teaching and Learning in the Department of Physiotherapy.

Bubup Wilam’s community includes a mostly Aboriginal staff, 70 Aboriginal children between the ages of six months and four-years-old and their families.

Each year since 2013, three or four students spent two semesters at Bubup Wilam as a capstone project in the Doctor of Physiotherapy program.

“They learn about the values and priorities of that community, do a health needs analysis to find out what the health priorities are and then design a health promotion project to meet those needs,” says Dr Remedios.

“In educating themselves, they educate the entire student cohort about the community and their experience.”

Previous student groups looked at healthy eating and, with the help of staff, children and families, developed a culturally appropriate healthy recipe book.

“When people think of physiotherapy they may think of massage or a neck rub but physiotherapy treats patients with stroke, brain damage and lung conditions and the biggest growing area is health promotion and working at community level,” says Tamara Clements, physiotherapy lecturer at the University.

“Students may begin the subject and think they’re going to be the physio for the Hawthorn Football Club. Through experiences like Bubup Wilam, we introduce them to other aspects of the practice.”

Joanne Bolton also supports community engagement in the physiotherapy department and says it has definite benefits for students and the Bubup Wilam children and families.

“They become part of the community and feel they’re doing something positive that matters and that will last. They have to build sustainability into their project, so it can be handed over to the community to maintain and run.”

Dr Remedios says community engagement helps students recognise that in their working lives they will see diverse clients. The project also builds skills in designing and evaluating powerful and effective health promotion activities.

“They learn how a community lives and operates, they learn about limitations and how that shapes what you do. They learn how to manage resources and how to problem solve and they learn that in a very engaging and welcoming space.”