On the facility of a physiotherapy role-emerging placement scheme in residential care: a qualitative account of the student experience

Objectives: To qualitatively explore the experiences of final-year physiotherapy students regarding a role-emerging placement (REP) in a residential care setting, examining its potential contribution to their professional development.

Design: Qualitative study with semi-structured, open-ended interviews to understand participants' experiences. Data were examined through reflexive thematic analysis to identify and interpret key themes.

Setting: An intervention in a single residential care facility in Northwest England, administered by a single UK university.

Participants: Six final-year physiotherapy students (four undergraduate, two postgraduate) who completed a 6-week REP in residential care. Of these, four identified as female and two as male.

Results: Analysis revealed five interconnected major themes: (1) preparedness and complexity; (2) peer environment; (3) free to fall; (4) free to fly; and (5) ecological validity. Participants described varying degrees of initial uncertainty followed by growing professional confidence, with peer learning and increasing autonomy contributing to their development.

Conclusion and implications: The REP model showed promise for physiotherapy education in residential care contexts. While some participants reported initial uncertainty, all described growth in resilience and professional confidence by the end of the placement. For potential implementation, placement designers might consider enhanced preplacement preparation, structured early-stage guidance, and attention to peer-group composition.