By Margot McCloy
My four weeks teaching physical therapy in DaNang, Vietnam, last January was a time of growth for the Vietnamese therapists and as well as for me. Living and traveling abroad while being a clinical instructor prepared me with the basics to teach PT in another country, but I still felt the culture shock.
I quickly turned to my teaching skills and assessed the therapists’ learning style, knowledge levels and interest so that I could be most effective. I did not want to impose my Western medicine upon their model of care; I wanted to shape my teaching model and let them decide what they wanted to take from the information I brought.
The first week I observed the flow of the clinic, which contained the spectrum of care from acute care to inpatient rehabilitation to outpatient. There were three wheelchairs shared by 10 patients and family and friends took turns transporting and helping each other. The therapist would demonstrate an activity with the patient, and then the patient and family member would carry out this activity for the next few sessions as the therapist made modifications. Much of the one-on-one time with the therapist was spent doing manual therapy. Continue reading