Top Contributor for May – Liliane Kirenga!

Top Contributor for the month of May is Liliane Kirenga!

Liliane has been a part of the Physiopedia Team for 7 months and has certainly made her mark!  Liliane has settled in extremely well with the Team, is always happy to share information and continuously makes meaningful contributions. Liliane, your drive and enthusiasm is contagious and you have without a doubt inspired others. Thank you for your contributions and for being our Top Contributor for the month of May.

Your name: Liliane Kirenga.

Time active with Physiopedia: Since September 2020.

Current role with Physiopedia: I’m part of the Content Development Team; I create and review content pages on Physiopedia with up-to-date scientific evidence. I’m excited to have started this month, along with other team members the first-ever Rotation Group, which will explore different aspects of the Content Development Team.

Where did you go to university/college? I have a Bachelor Degree (Honours) and Masters of Sciences in Physiotherapy from the University of the Western Cape, in South Africa

Where do you work? I have been away from clinical practice for some time now, but back home I worked in a Tertiary Referral Hospital for several years. I have been also involved in different educational projects of the Physiotherapy Association as well as the Allied Health Council.

Describe your role: My clinical work focused mainly on treating paediatric and musculoskeletal out-patients but neurology inpatients were also part of my caseload. As the head of the department, I would also supervise the activities, design, implementation and monitoring of the department’s action plan.

What is the most rewarding part of being a physiotherapist? Being able to help people and make a difference in their lives. There is no greater joy than seeing a baby who can sit and later on crawl; a joyful child who can play football again with his friends; a lady who can manage to do her chores pain-free or a grandpa who can walk again post-stroke. These might seem little like steps to us as therapists, but they are very big steps for our patients.  It’s amazing to see that your treatment plan is effective.

What are some of the more challenging aspects about being a physiotherapist? Not being able to help all patients or seeing children with disabilities not getting the proper treatment they require.

What are some of your professional passions? I love working with children; treating them, and learning as much as possible about their world is one of my passions. Another of my passions is treating musculoskeletal conditions. They always bring great discussions with patients. Lastly, I believe in the power of health promotion to bring the positive changes we want not only in our patients but in the community in general.

What are a few of your personal passions? I enjoy spending quality time with my family and doing different funny activities with the kids such as drawing/painting with my daughter; watching a football match or working out with the boys, or even participating in cooking lessons with all of them. We love discovering new places as a family and also enjoy visiting family members and friends. I love taking part in projects aiming to help the less fortunate and children with disabilities.

What would be your advice to a newly graduating physiotherapy?

I would say:

  • Don’t be shy to ask and don’t stop learning;
  • Treat your patient as a whole and refer when necessary;
  • Make sure your treatment plan is patient-centric;
  • Be the change you want to see in your patients;
  • Be kind to yourself and open to change.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years? I’m working on different projects and hopefully, in 5 years they will be up and running fully!

What are the best things about being a Physiopedia volunteer? Changing my career path was not an easy task but being part of the Physiopedia Content Team has been an amazing journey. I’ve learned so many new digital skills combined with writing skills, which have helped me in the creation of Physiopedia pages. Volunteering at Physiopedia is also helping me to stay up-to-date with the latest research in our field.

How has being a Physiopedia volunteer helped your professional development/career progression? With Physiopedia I’m able to learn and connect with Physiotherapists from all around the world and with different backgrounds. It has also helped me to constantly upgrade my knowledge and therefore, maintain a career in Physiotherapy while creating and reviewing Physiopedia pages. I’ve learned, and I am still learning, different digital and writing skills that I’m using in my new career and journey. Through Physiopedia, I’m also discovering new physiotherapy-related concepts, which will be part of many great projects moving forward.

What are your hopes and aspirations for Physiopedia? I hope that Physiopedia will continue to impact the physiotherapy community for many more years to come, by reaching as many Physiotherapists as possible, especially those in the lower-middle-income countries. I also hope that there will always be a great team of dedicated Physiotherapists sharing the Physiopedia vision.

 What is your favourite Physioplus course? I did the Spinal Cord Injury course a few years ago and it was a great one. I’m planning to do others very soon.

 Anything else you would like to share? I’m grateful to be a part of the amazing Physiopedia Team! I’ve learned and discovered so many things in the past months and I’m really enjoying this journey. We are blessed to be here today, let us be a blessing to others. Physiopedia rocks & Physiotherapy works!