Level 1 APA paediatrics course a success!
I had the pleasure of convening the new level 1 paediatrics physiotherapy course for the Australian Physiotherapy Association over the weekend. In the coming years, the levels 2 and 3 courses will also be developed.
The course was developed in consultation with the National Paediatric Group for the APA, as a standardised course. It has already been run in Western Australia, and later this year is coming to New South Wales and Queensland.
The course covered:
working with babies, pre schoolers and school aged children
neuro developmental conditions such as cerebral palsy
musculoskeletal conditions such as plagiocephaly, Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip
the current physical activity guidelines for children, and ways to facilitate participation of all children of all abilities in physical activity
approaches to behaviour analysis
We were very lucky to have two very special 4 and 5 year old teachers come in to show us how they move doing their amazing skills.
Many thanks to our fantastic presenters Tara Fitzgreald, Tandy Hastings Ison and Fiona Moran.
We received excellent feedback from the participants, despite a few organisational glitches that we might expect in running a brand new course. We were glad to hear it was helpful for physios both working in paediatrics currently, and those planning on moving into paediatrics in the future.
Shayna Gavin is a physiotherapist and swimming teacher who is passionate about helping babies, children and young people learn functional skills so they can participate in life at home, school and in their community. Recognising that children do best in their own environments, she visits homes, schools, and leisure activities from football fields to ballet classes. She also has daily aquatic physiotherapy sessions available at two private swimming schools in Moonee Ponds and Greensborough, Melbourne. She combines principles of paediatric physiotherapy, Neuro Developmental Treatment / Bobath, motor learning, Sensory Integration and swimming teaching to address the individual needs of each child and their family. She loves providing professional development to physiotherapists, allied health and education professionals, allied health assistants and swimming teachers.
