CLINICAL MENTORS CLUB
(Practice • Mentor • Master)
About
Clinical Mentors Club is the Faculty of Physical Therapy’s peer-teaching platform, where senior students coach junior years in the practical skills and clinical reasoning that physical therapy depends on. Through monthly hands-on practice labs, case discussions, and mock practical examinations run under staff supervision, the club raises exam and placement readiness across the faculty while building teaching and leadership ability in its senior mentors.
Vision
To build a faculty culture in which practical competency is learned continuously between students, not only in the weeks before an exam — where every graduate of the Faculty of Physical Therapy enters clinical practice with confident hands, sound reasoning, and the habit of teaching others.
Mission
To run regular, supervised practice sessions and case discussions in which Year 4 and Year 5 students coach junior years in assessment, handling, and clinical decision-making. The club aims to raise demonstrable practical competency across the whole student body while developing teaching, feedback, and leadership skills in the senior mentors themselves.
Key Focus Areas
- Hands-on rehearsal of core assessment and treatment techniques taught across the five years.
- Case-based clinical reasoning: moving from findings to hypothesis to treatment plan out loud.
- Practical and OSCE examination preparation through mock stations and peer examining.
- Placement readiness: patient communication, documentation, infection control, and professional behaviour.
- Structured mentor–mentee pairing between senior and junior students.
- Giving and receiving corrective feedback as a trainable clinical skill.
Expected Activities
- Monthly hands-on practice labs led by Year 4 and Year 5 mentors under staff supervision.
- Case discussion sessions held ahead of each clinical placement block.
- Mock OSCE days with peer examiners and standardised checklists.
- Mentor training workshops: how to demonstrate a technique, how to give useful feedback.
- “Ask a Senior” open sessions for juniors approaching practical exams.
- An end-of-year skills showcase / competency day open to faculty staff.
Expected Outputs / Impact
- Documented evidence of student practical competency that supports academic accreditation requirements.
- Measurably higher student readiness for practical examinations and clinical training.
- Teaching, supervision, and leadership skills developed in senior students before graduation.
- A continuous mentor–mentee network linking all five academic years.
- A growing shared library of skills checklists, case sheets, and practice protocols.
Potential Projects
- A peer-reviewed bank of skills checklists aligned with each course’s practical objectives.
- Short student-filmed technique demonstration videos for revision use.
- An annual faculty-wide Mock OSCE Day before the practical exam season.
- A Mentor Handbook defining the role, ethics, and limits of peer teaching.
- A year-by-year “Placement Readiness Guide” written by students who have completed it.
