Page 119 - RAPTC Mind, Body & Spirit

2017 has been a fluid year here at RRU Aldershot, with a high volume of staff movement for both civilian staff and military personnel. I succeeded WO2 (QMSI) Andy Balwah
RAPTC as Regional Trade Specialist Advisor (RTSA) in May 2017. The transition has been an eye-opening experience. The high operational tempo of RRU Aldershot leaves little time for ‘to- do lists’. The tempo coupled with the inherent demands of the RTSA role meant that I have had to adopt a very flexible approach to working. However, the challenges presented are inversely outweighed by the rewards afforded by my role as RTSA. The heuristic nature of the RTSA’s role has afforded me scope for professional development.
As mentioned above, we have had our fair share of staff movement of military personnel due to postings. We lost Capt Curtis RAMC as 2iC, SSgt (SSI) Rich Rowley RAPTC as a senior ERI to PCRF Sandhurst, and Sgt (SI) ‘Lift Heavy’ Pradip Rai RAPTC to Brunei. We gained newcomers to the ERI Cadre in the recently qualified Sgt (SI) McCann and Sgt (SI) Woodhead RAPTC. This included a
Sgt (SI) Woodhead demonstrating the ‘heel lift
Sgt (SI) McCann taking a lumbo-pelvic control session
new civilian ERI staff member, Miss Emily Wenham, who took over from our fantastic locum ERI, Mr O’Brien.
The recent geographical restructuring of Defence Primary Healthcare has resulted in the merger of several regions. As a result of this restructuring, RRU Aldershot gained oversight of PCRFs within the previously London-South East region. This has significantly increased my remit as RTSA and that of the RRO, Maj Ferry RAMC. Consequently, it has proven somewhat challenging in arranging RTSA PCRF visits. These visits help us to maintain situational awareness of the challenges faced by the PCRFs within our Region. That being said, we have managed to visit the majority of the PCRFs within our remit. Maj Ferry and I were greatly impressed by the continued high standard of service delivery and patient care that is being delivered by committed multi-disciplinary teams within the PCRFs.
The high volume of output of the RRU has remained the only constant throughout this period of staff transition and geographical restructuring. We ensured that our service delivery was delivered to a gold standard throughout and we will continue to ensure that standard for 2018. The demands on Defence Rehab, and subsequently the RRU, have not abated even though many major overseas operations have ended. Consequently, in order to ensure that our training programmes are current and relevant, using courses in-validation, we have designed and implemented a one-day Injury Prevention Workshop that has been well received by AAPTI attendees. The aim of the workshop is to build on the knowledge and experience of AAPTIs.
SSgt (SSI) John Stokes-Whittaker RAPTC arrived at PCRF Aldershot in May 2017 from DMRC Headley Court and this post is his final tour of duty within the military. Within the last couple of years, SSgt Stokes-Whittaker has progressed quickly in the realm of cycling. His impressive daily 50+ miles commute from
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REGIONAL REHABILITATION UNIT ALDERSHOT
WO2 (QMSI) P Percival RAPTC
PRIMARY CARE REHABILITATION FACILITY BOVINGTON
Sgt (SI) DC Best RAPTC
Sgt (SI) Best coaching the weighted squat
Emily Wenman leading a Pilates session