A Day in the Life

For Young Learners

What the Work Involves

Four things show up in all five of those roles.

Talking to people who are worried. A knee injury to a sixteen year old footballer is not a small event in their life, and treating it as one is the fastest way to lose their trust.

Working to a clock. Operating lists and clinic slots are timed, and running late has a cost for everyone further down the list.

Writing things down. If it is not recorded, the next person cannot pick it up.

Learning something new most weeks, because the evidence moves.

The People Who Do It

Job titles tell you very little. Two people with the same title can spend their weeks doing almost nothing in common.

This page describes five roles in a knee service by the work itself. None of these are better than the others. They suit different people.

The surgeon. Operating lists on some days, clinics on others. A clinic is mostly listening and examining, and most of the people seen in a knee clinic never have an operation.

The physiotherapist. Sees patients far more often than the surgeon does, and for far longer. Most knee problems are managed by loading the joint correctly over weeks and months, and that is physiotherapy rather than surgery.

The radiographer. Takes the images. Getting a knee into the right position for a useful picture is a skill, and a badly positioned film answers the wrong question.

The theatre practitioner. Runs the operating theatre, knows every instrument by name and hands it over before it is asked for.

The researcher. Works out whether what the rest of the team does actually helps. Much of what is now standard in knee surgery was standard for years before anyone tested it.

What It Takes

Different roles reward different strengths.

If you like solving a problem in one sitting, theatre work may suit you.

If you prefer seeing someone change over three months, physiotherapy may suit you better.

If you like equipment and precision, imaging is worth a look.

If you like arguing with evidence, research is a career on its own.

Where to Find Out More

Most hospitals run work experience or insight schemes, usually with a minimum age. Ask a school careers adviser to find out what is available locally.

The professional bodies for each of these roles publish careers pages written for school age readers. The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, the Society of Radiographers and the Royal College of Surgeons are the places to start.