Nurse and old man and cane for retirement, rehabilitation or healing.

Ageing

Micro-credential
Physiotherapy

Course details

Elderly patients account for 40% of all hospital admissions and frequently present with multiple pathology and complex symptoms and signs that require treatment by the wider multidisciplinary team.

Physiotherapists need to be skilled in the holistic assessment and treatment of frail individuals in a variety of clinical settings and must be able to use the best available evidence to inform their practice. It is expected that this module will develop students’ knowledge in this area and will underpin clinical reasoning in the management of older adults and patients.

This course is for healthcare professionals working in older-person rehabilitation in hospital, community or private practice settings. Professionals such as physiotherapists, occupational therapists and nurses may apply for this course.

The programme will be delivered with online material for participants to access in their own time and prior to workshops/classes. This is followed by scheduled in-person workshops and classes in RCSI’s St Stephen’s Green campus.

Students who successfully complete this module and pass the assessment will receive a certificate detailing the academic award and credits received. This is a postgraduate programme and those who complete this course will gain 10 European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) at level 9 on the National Framework of Qualifications (equivalent to level 7 on the European Framework of Qualifications).

Course leader: Professor Frances Horgan

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of this module, the student will be able to: 

  1. Demonstrate an advanced knowledge of current therapeutic approaches to the rehabilitation of the older patient.
  2. Understand and be able to critically evaluate current health issues relating to ageing in Ireland and the scientific rationale and clinical usefulness of therapeutic approaches in the field of older-person rehabilitation.
  3. Demonstrate an understanding of the social and psychological impact of ageing, and an evidence-based framework to enhance the physiotherapy treatment of the older patient.
  4. Demonstrate an up-to-date knowledge of innovative experimental research in older person rehabilitation and how this might be applied to clinical practice.
  5. Critically appraise relevant published literature, including longitudinal ageing studies and their findings.