Unit of Study PODR2012 Work Integrated Learning in Pedorthics II (2025)

Unit description

Builds on previous work integrated experiences and provides students with a 7 week full-time continued supervised clinical experience in the provision of pedorthic services to the general public. Within this supervised environment the student clinician will be responsible for case planning and management.

Unit content

Students will be involved in providing pedorthic treatment involving custom made orthoses and footwear for  medium risk cases. The cases will need to have a level of complexity or lower limb deformity to clinically require complete custom-made footwear with orthotic elements.  The student is expected to do the pedorthic assessment, develop the treatment plan, take, design and construct the cast negatives and positives, orthoses and footwear under supervision and guidance. This will include fitting trials with the client. 

While on placement students, under lower level of supervision and guidance, will participate in learning experiences to develop medium level clinical, professional and communication skills.  These experiences will include:

• Taking health histories of clients with medium risk and increased level of complexity or foot and ankle deformity or functional impairments
• Biomechanical assessments sports, neurological and muscular impairment, skeletal deformities and reviewing medical reports, including radiology results
• Clinical assessments (including, but limited to, range of motion checks, skin condition, muscular ability, hands-on manual examination) and treatment plan for the lower limb
• Treatment planning considering evidence based practice, implementation and progress review including appropriate adjustments to treatment (for the lower limb)
• Three-dimensional foot and ankle model (casting and scanning) for clients
• Manufacture of pedorthic appliances for low risk clients, including design and construct the cast negatives and positives, orthoses and complete footwear
• Conduct trial fittings as well as final fittings. Compare outcome against planed outcome, account for variations.
• Provide client / user focused induction to the use, care and follow up of any fitted appliance.
• Reviewing cases by peer and supervisor interaction

In this context, workplace professionalism including teamwork; limitations of pedorthic practice and appropriate referral to other health care professionals; workplace health and safety regulations and infection control; and medico-legal and ethical principles pertaining to clinical practice will be strengthened. Integral to this, students will be required to communicate by written and oral means with clients, peers, staff and other health care professionals using language and terminology appropriate to the situation.