BOLTON Hospital welcomes physiotherapist who has been out of the profession for a decade.

Through Health Education England’s ‘Return to Practice’ programme, Joanna Wilks refreshed her knowledge and has been reintroduced into vocation at Royal Bolton.

She needed to complete 60 days of updating her skills, at least 30 days of which needed to be on a clinical placement.

She was successful with a placement application and the Trust employed her as a Band 4 Therapy Instructor in March 2021, which allowed her to complete the clinical hours that she needed.

Upon completion of her clinical placement, Joanna applied to the Health and Care Professions Council to be readmitted as a physiotherapist at the end of June 2021.

Once admitted, she then applied for a role with the Community Therapies team and was hired in the summer of 2021.

She said: “It has been great being able to join the fantastic Community Therapy team. They’ve been so welcoming and supportive and have made the Return to Practice process so much easier.

“While it’s been a challenge remembering my clinical knowledge, some things have come back very quickly, I’m also aware that I still have a lot to learn.

“The Community Therapy team are very helpful though and I’m learning something new every day.”