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student brief in The Centenary Bike Ride - The Long Haul

When the team lines up at the start of the John O’Groats to Land’s End bike ride at the beginning of August it will do so in the knowledge that the hardest part of the event is behind it. The organisation of the ride is the greatest task facing members of the team. The planning and logistics required to get 20 riders and their support crew from one end of the country to the other are phenomenal, so much so that eight lads and 12 lasses are often left wondering if it’s all worth the effort.

It is in these moments when out of the blue will drop a letter from a physio- therapist offering help and support. Whether it’s the offer of food, or accom- modation, or the donation of funds from a Branch, it doesn’t matter. The fact that the team is receiving support from the membership gives it the sort of boost needed to redouble its efforts and realise it will all be worth while. At the end of the day, it is for the membership of the CSP that the ride is being undertaken, as its main objective is to raise public awareness of the role of physiotherapy as a health care profession in its Centenary year. So, where have these important offers of support come from so far? 0 From Branches: Cumbria, Chiltern, West Yorkshire, Southampton, King’s Lynn, Manchester and the North West. From schools of physiotherapy: Oswestry, Manchester, WYCHS (Pinderfields), Bath and Birmingham.

0 From individuals: Carolyn Trickey, Anne Marie O’Rourke, Elizabeth Sanderson, Francis Allen, Rosemary Bell, Patricia McCoy, Julia Lamb and Pam Turner.

This is by no means a comprehensive list, so apologies to anyone who has been omitted. It would also be heartening for the team to think that it would grow a lot bigger than this between now and the start of the ride which is less than 100 days away.

Members of the team are also working hard to obtain support from the business sector and the public. There have been a number of articles in local papers throughout the country and a couple of radio interviews bringing the event to the public’s attention.

Training for the ride itself is going well. The team are pictured just prior to a second training ride in Malvern. Almost 35 miles were covered and the need for a good training programme was fully realised - we didn’t dare publish the ‘after’ photograph, it would have been too dis- tressing! Some of those offering to help have expressed a desire to spend a day cycling with the team for part of the route. This is welcomed.

Ensuring the safety of the cyclists on the roads has been paramount and police authorities have been contacted and one of the team members has produced a safety leaflet for all those taking part. Insurance is also being sought to cover the expedition, equipment and riders.

Posters and sponsorship forms have

been produced and incorporated into a pack along with other information for anybody interested in helping to raise money for the charities. These can be obtained by contacting Steve Andrews, students officer at the CSP.

The project received an enthusiastic response from student members of the CSP at the annual delegates conference in Birmingham in March. Many offers of support were received along with promises to stage in-college events aimed at raising sponsorship money.

During the ride the team will be willing to turn up at locally organised events aimed at raising the profile of physio- therapy. Such events will, it is hoped, include meetings with local physiother- apists, MPs, sports personalities, civic receptions and the like which should gain media coverage.

The team is still on the lookout for various pieces of equipment including tents, preferably four five-man and one large ‘mess’ tent to be used as a communal area. Offers of accommodation in the north of the country have been quite sparse, so if anybody from that part of the world who, reading this, feels they could come up with a venue capable of sleeping 20 or so individuals then please do get in touch.

Thank you for your support.

Mike Chisholm Centenary Cycle Ride Chairman

Physiotherapy, May 1994, vol80, no 5

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Oswestry and North Staffordshire School of Physiotherapy hosted a Weekend of Complementary Therapies in February as our contribution to the Centenary year celebrations. We received 70 students from 23 schools throughout the UK for lectures, workshops and discussions on the theme of pain.

We asked the delegates to complete a course evaluation form before they departed and we found the comments to include ‘We would have liked more students to be allowed to attend’, ‘It should have been for a week’, and ‘Brilliant, would come back!’ It seemed we had come a long way from the tired, downcast faces of Friday night. Even the accommodation was referred to as ‘chummy’ and ‘good character building stuff!’ even though there were also comments along the lines of ‘would have preferred not to sleep on the floor and share one bath with 69 others’ - not all at the same time, may I hasten to add!

Apparently there was a ‘correct balance of work’ which was ‘very informative’. We had lectures on reflexology, hypnotherapy

and aromatherapy on Saturday morning with workshops on shiatsu, reflexology and aromatherapy in the afternoon. These were all well received although some students would have liked them to be ‘more relevant to physiotherapy’.

On Sunday morning we had lectures on acupuncture and herbalism which were very stimulating. No doubt, as we now all know the benefits, we are enjoying ‘walking barefoot on Mother earth’ for a while each day.

As for entertainment, ‘awesome’ must be the favoured description for Saturday night’s barn dance where we all enjoyed swinging our partners to the accompani- ment (and instructionl) of a local band.

Congratulations go to the chap who zapped off to the Centenary Ball in Birmingham and still made it back in time for lectures on Sunday.

Commiserations to those who could not get here due to adverse weather.

Course evaluation from Oswestry? Not all printable here, but a wonderful, worth while weekend.

Thanks for coming!

Weekend of Complementary Therapies

Second-Year ONSSP Students

Are you a Weak or Strong Reg i o na I Co-o rd i n a t o r?

Why do ‘sensibly minded’ students volunteer to put themselves through the usually frustrating experience of being a regional co-ordinator? It is not as though a BSc (Ordinary/Hons) degree in physio- therapy (be it three or four years) is not sufficiently time-consuming. As Richard Leaver (March 1994) asked: Do you know your student delegate in your school of physiotherapy? I would further that question by asking: Do you know who your regional co-ordinator is, and what he or she is there for?

There are six CSP student regions. London has most students with nine schools (by July 1995 this will reduce to seven), and Scotland with three schools the fewest. The regional coordinators are elected from delegates attending the AGM held in March. Each delegate should have attended the two-day training session at the CSP in December, which is designed to familiarise them with the role of delegates and how the CSP functions. However, there has been no specific training for the important role of being a coordinator (training is planned to Start this year).

The regional co-ordinator’s primary role is to organise a termly meeting for the delegates in that region. This is where your voice as a student can influence how active the region becomes. Each co-ordinator is a pivot between the ‘grass roots’ and the Student Executive Committee, enabling a flow of information and feelings up and down the chain.

A strong region has plenty of communi- cation between the students of each school, fostering social and sporting links which can last longer than purely the academic period of your prospective career.

All regions have the problem of student apathy (some more than others), which is both the delegates’ and regional co- ordinators’ biggest frustration. Since 1987, when students became eligible for CSP membership, this problem has daunted many a keen and determined coordinator trying to make their respective regions awaken from a deep autonomous slumber. A possible solution, which would also improve the coordinators’ satisfaction, is encourage both lecturers and principal to take a more active interest in their students’ existence outside the academic circle at each school, in respect of the region as a whole.

To be a strong regional co-ordinator, you need to be organised, tactful but determined, a good negotiator and - probably most importantly - very thick skinned. You have to be able to wear many hats at the same time (as student, delegate and coordinator) and be able to talk to many different levels of people. Although as coordinator you are there to motivate your delegates and students, it is not a oneperson show. You will need help, so seek it.

A region that talks will overcome most of its problems. It might be frustrating, but in the end it can all be worth while.

Terry McRae 1993 London Regional Co-ordinator

Second Year Delegate, University of East London

Small Centenary Sweatshirts It is now possible to buy small Centenary

sweatshirts. Originally, only medium, large and extra large were available but, in the light of demand, we now have a small size. Like the others, the small sweatshirts are also €1 1.95 plus 6Op postage and packing. Orders should be sent, with payment, to the CSP Public Relations Department.

Members wishing to exchange Cent- enary merchandise for bigger/smaller sizes should return the garments not to CSP but the company handling the mailing. The name and address is: Bill Yates. MMC Limited, Unit 15, Haslemere Heathrow Estate, Hounslow, Middlesex, TW4 6NF.

Equally, complaints about the despatch of wrong items should also be addressed to MMC.

4 z W

2 Dominic is Cross-country Choice

Dominic Bannister (above), a first-year physiotherapy student at the University of Teesside, was selected as a member of the Great Britain squad for the International Amateur Athletic Federation Cross Country Championships in Budapest, Hungary, this Spring, and the British Universities Sport Federation World Student Cross Country Championships held in Limerick, Eire, at Easter.

Dominic has enjoyed cross-country running since he was 15 years old and was the Southern Counties Champion in 1993. He comes from Altrincham, Cheshire.

Physiotherapy, May 1994, vol80, no 5