Tips For Working/Learning From Home
Due to the current COVID-19 situation around the world, we made sure we caught up with all of our physios working abroad. We were pleased to hear that those working in Aged Care are able to make such a difference to residents' lives who are unable to see visitors due to the lockdown, our MSK physios are now working from home consulting over Telehealth. Telehealth has always been a big industry for doctors, but this will be a completely new experience for lots of physios around the world! Similarly, we know students are now learning online. Life has changed but hopefully, this blog will give you some ideas to help you make this time as productive as possible!
ROUTINE - it’s so easy when you’re at home to fall into bad habits like wearing pyjamas all day but try to make an effort to have a normal routine, get up, take a shower, have breakfast and write a PRIORITY LIST. It’s important to prepare your mind and body for a productive day of working.
SET YOUR SPACE – find an area in your house that you can work. This should be separate from your relaxation space so avoid working on your bed or couch. Choose somewhere you can STAY FOCUSED and has GOOD INTERNET CONNECTION. Disconnecting from work can become difficult when the lines between work and home are blurred so having a separate space (even if just a corner in a room) is really important.
TAKE BREAKS – just like a normal working day make sure you take breaks to stay balanced and keep clearly defined work hours.
ALIGN YOUR SCHEDULE WITH OTHERS – if you are living with others it’s good to let each other know how you are planning your day so that you can respect each other and set some boundaries.
LOOK PROFESSIONAL – even if you are not due to see anyone online make sure you have dressed appropriately; this will help your mindset and is particularly important if you are speaking to clients, teachers or colleagues. Also, if you are video calling consider your background - try to use a plain wall (rather than your bedroom) and if you are using zoom you can edit the background to your choice. This is also an important tip when interviewing for positions abroad!
TAKE NOTES – you may find it harder to focus when working from home so write notes to stay on track and don’t be afraid to email your teachers with any questions.
DON’T FORGET TO COMMUNICATE – it’s easy to feel disconnected when you’re working from home so call or better yet video chat others in your class or workplace and see how they are getting on. In this uncertain time, it’s important that we stay connected and look out for each other!
MAKE SURE YOU ARE WORKING LEGALLY AND ETHICALLY - remember confidentiality, the security of documents, indemnity insurance,following guidelines, regulations etc. all still apply when working online.
USE YOUR EXTRA TIME WISELY – It’s really important to stay on top of our mental health so how about using the time you would usually spend commuting starting a new hobby, exercising or relaxing – apps like Headspace can be great for those feeling stressed.
We hope this is helpful! Best of luck to physiotherapists providing Telehealth and for students working online :)
We are still open for final year students/physiotherapists that would like help preparing overseas applications for the future.
Do not hesitate to get in touch: info@physio-abroad.com
