Final reflection
So that’s it, my first year of university finished and what a learning curve it has been. From reflective writing to learning about a horses digestive tract I feel this year has taught me a lot of valuable aspects important for my following years at university and once I become a veterinary physiotherapist.
Modules I anticipated to be challenging did prove to be difficult especially predominately science based topics including anatomy and physiology and functional anatomy. As stated in several reflections I early acknowledged scientific based topics and papers were aspects I found particularly difficult to interpret. This was discovered during my journal club presentation where I asked specifically not to have the scientific aspects, as I knew they were a limitation of my ability and I didn’t want to let my group down by misinterpreting information. However I was quick to acknowledge this was the wrong thing to do as it meant I wasn’t able to work on my weaknesses which meant I would never feel confident with analysing scientific information, an important part of any science based degree including veterinary physiotherapy. I understood it would put me at a disadvantage if I didn’t begin to work on it, therefore I brought various anatomy books recommended to me by peers and lecturers, alongside this when given another opportunity at group work I put myself forward to focus on the science based sections, this is what I did during the nutrition assignment. By building on my weaknesses it has allowed me to do further reading into the subject in greater depth.
Animal management practical situations helped to improve upon my animal handling skills, predominately my equine handling skills. The practicals proved to be especially beneficial to me as I have a mild kinaesthetic learning preference acknowledged by the results of my VARK test, this means as an individual I benefit from ‘learning by doing’ (Witte et al., 2017). I can see the sheer improvement of my equine handling skills when referring back to my first reflection discussing my handling skills. It stated I felt very unconfident and apprehensive around horses, in particularly younger horses, after numerous sessions predominately with younger horses I can now positively say I feel confident around them in many different situations, this will be important for me as a veterinary physiotherapist as some of my cases could involve young horses which can become aggressive and unpredictable when in pain (Oke, 2011) so it important I feel confident to deal with such situations. These valuable skills have also allowed me to perform my OSPE with confidence in comparison to my mock OSPE where I stated how anxious I felt.
I recognise that being a veterinary physiotherapist is a practical based job but alongside this it is important to understand other aspects of the job including legislation, statistics and business management, all-important skills that will be continuously used within this profession. Professional skills lectures helped me to understand ways in which different businesses run from sole traders to limited companies, helping me come to the conclusion that I wish to run my business as a limited company as the business will have its own separate legal entity including any debts (Martin, 2017). Other sections of our lectures included legislations that will be valuable as a veterinary physiotherapist. The main legislation covered included The Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966 in which it states that it is illegal for any person besides the owner to treat the animal, unless the veterinary surgeon has given permission to do so (RVCS, 1966), this is why before having treatment by a veterinary physiotherapist the client must have a veterinary referral form. Alongside this we were also taught the important of insurance including professional and public liability insurance (NAVP, 2016), associations such as the national association of veterinary physiotherapists (NAVP) require this form of insurance when becoming a member. To further expand on my understanding of the profession, I carried a business case study on a business which focuses on canine hydrotherapy as this is an area I wish to go into in the future, this has allowed me to understand how I can reach future aspirations as well as the range of different associations I can become a member of, including the Canine Hydrotherapy Association (CHA). The business case study also helped me to shape my personal development plan in which I stated in late 2020 that I wish to of completed a canine hydrotherapist course, becoming a member or the CHA.
Throughout my first year I have written numerous reflections, now having completed my first year these reflections have allowed me to see the great amount of improvement in my standard of work, confidence and initiative. My reflections were based upon the Gibbs reflective cycle (University of Cumbria, 2016) and I used them as a way of improving my learning (Costa et al., 2017). I thoroughly believe reflection writing has aided me throughout my studies and will be valuable when practising as a veterinary physiotherapist. My reflection on exams benefited me significantly, as I was able to refer back to them and carry out the same revision techniques, which proved effective in semester one exams. This also allowed me to follow an action plan to overcome struggles in my revision such as the factor that having my phone out reduced my ability to concentrate (Thornton et al., 2014) therefore I gave my phone to a peer to reduce the temptation.
To conclude my first year has taught me the importance of legislation and those I will need to abide by now and continuously when I begin to practice as a veterinary physiotherapist, including the Animal Welfare Act 2006, which purpose is to prevent cruelty to animals (BBC, 2014). I now also understand the benefits of reflecting and it acknowledge how it can aid me with continuous development of weaknesses once in my profession hence why I have added on my professional development plan that I shall carry out a SWOT analysis every semester and every six months when practising as a veterinary physiotherapist. A SWOT analysis will allow me to address my weaknesses as well as develop my business skills (Nordmeyer, 2017).
Bibliography
BBC (2014). BBC - Ethics - Animal ethics: Animal Welfare Act. [online] Bbc.co.uk. Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/animals/overview/latest.shtml
Costa and Kallaick (2017). Learning Through Reflection. [online] Ascd.org. Available at: http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/108008/chapters/Learning-Through-Reflection.aspx
Martin, R. (2017). Sole trader v. limited company: key tax & legal differences. [online] Rossmartin.co.uk. Available at: http://www.rossmartin.co.uk/starting-in-business-77750/140-sole-trader-v-limited-company-key-tax-a-legal-differences
NAVP (2017). National Association of Veterinary Physiotherapists. [online] National Association of Veterinary Physiotherapists. Available at: http://www.navp.co.uk/
Nordmeyer (2017). Advantages & Disadvantages of SWOT Analysis. [online] Smallbusiness.chron.com. Available at: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/advantages-amp-disadvantages-swot-analysis-41398.html
Oke, S. (2011). Link Between Chronic Pain and Aggression in Horses Identified. [online] TheHorse.com. Available at: http://www.thehorse.com/articles/27198/link-between-chronic-pain-and-aggression-in-horses-identified
University of Cumbria (2016). Gibbs reflective cycle. [online] University of Cumbria. Available at: http://my.cumbria.ac.uk/Public/LISS/Documents/skillsatcumbria/ReflectiveCycleGibbs.pdf
Witte, Clark and Gainer (2017). Institute of Learning Styles Research. [online] Learningstyles.org. Available at: http://www.learningstyles.org/styles/kinesthetic.html
