Kirstin Adams

Dedicated and enthusiastic physiotherapist committed to excellence and value creation. Recognized as a meticulous, research-based clinician skilled at multitasking and excelling under pressure in hospital settings. Thrives in team and individual settings to develop holistic treatment solutions with compassion. Possesses over 6 years of continuous clinical experience, including in-patient and out-patient care, manual therapy, exercise and rehabilitation, as well as ICU and critical care. Grateful for diverse healthcare settings worked in, treating patients of all ages and various conditions. Eager to contribute to your practice, enhance clinical skills, and positively impact your business and clientele.

• Dry Needling Level 1 Clinical Solutions, Durban, July 2019
• Basic Strapping and Kinesiology Strapping HiTech Therapy Courses, Durban, July 2019
• Basic Life Support Skills/ CPR

• Paediatric Experience
• Maitland Cottage Children’s Hospital
• Completed 6 weeks of clinical learning at this well-known children’s orthopedic hospital in Cape Town. Roles included the assessment of various orthopedic conditions ranging from Osteogenesis Imperfecta, Spina Bifida, Pott’s Disease, upper and lower limb fractures and orthopedic disabilities following Cerebral Palsy. Following assessment, management included; educating both parents and children about their condition, providing exercise programs to improve range, muscle power and tone, proprioception and coordination for specific conditions, assisting in assessing and providing appropriate walking aids and further enhancing their healing and quality of life. Special learnings included splinting with plaster of paris, reading and understanding orthopedic x-rays and attending the clubfoot clinic where I gained further understanding and treatment of the condition provided at the hospital.
• Bel Porto School
• Completed 6 weeks at Bel Porto School for pupils with intellectual impairment, cerebral palsy and other physical disabilities. Responsibilities included assessment and ongoing treatment/rehabilitation for pupils at the school. This exposure was more long-term rehabilitation for the students and the focus of treatment was to best restore and improve their physical function through play and adjust their environments such as the classroom and playground to best suit their needs. As the school is self-sustained, we donated toys and shoes to school at the end of the clinical block to aid the pupils’ rehab. Special learnings: Joint approximations, tone release through shaking, wheelchair assessment and adjustment for classroom function.
• Other areas of work: Brooklyn Chest Hospital
• NMS Experience
• Salt River and Grassy Park clothing factory
• In line with the Labour Laws, medical services were offered to labour workers and their families working in the clothing factory, physiotherapy being one of them. Many of the patients seen were as a result of their prolonged ineffective working positions, type of work and long hours. Most common neuromuskuloskeletal (NMS) conditions treated, were back pain, neck pain, shoulder, elbow and wrist pain. This clinical rotation gave me great insight as to how physiotherapists can holistically alter and better a patients pain experience by examining their daily activities and environment.
• New Somerset Hospital outpatient department
• Knysna Outpatient Physiotherapy Department
• As part of the General clinical rotation both in-patient and out-patient care was done at these facilities. Both facilities offered outpatient care to patients who required further physiotherapy following surgery, burns, strokes etc., patients who were referred from their GP’s and patients serving jail time were also referred here. Along with all the routine NMS modalities, I was taught the basics of strapping and had a better understanding of the treatment modality used. The Knysna Outpatient Department sourced a number of clinics in the catchment area. I visited the clinic on a weekly basis and saw similar cases, as mentioned above.
• NEURO Experience
• New Somerset Hospital and Knysna Hospital
• Both facilities had an influx of acute stroke patients who required daily rehabilitation to improve their independence to go home or to be referred to a step-down facility. General treatments included bed exercises, passive and active assisted movements, joint approximations along with deep pressure and stroking, balance and proprioceptive training, and gait re-education. This facility also provided the opportunity for a close working relationship with the occupational therapist and speech therapist which aided effective and holistic treatment outcomes.
• Life Esidemeni, Mitchell’s Plain
• This facility, both home to spinal cord patients with adverse complications such as bed sores, stroke patients and patients with traumatic brain injuries requiring further management. This step-down facility offered long term (6 weeks or more) rehabilitative services where patients received daily rehab individually or in a group. I worked closely with the physiotherapy assistant who ran most group exercises and assisted where needed. This stage of rehab provided the opportunity to include patients’ family in their rehab program and incorporate their daily programs with their daily routine at home.
• Groote Schuur Hospital ICU and Neuro Ward
• Acute cases of TBI’s, CVA’s and post neurological surgical intervention were amongst the patients seen. My ICU experience started in the neuro unit. My learnings included: vital sign, ICP and Blood Gas readings, understanding of medications specific to patients’ needs, chest physiotherapy including open and closed suctioning techniques. Early rehab was commenced with these patients by retraining their movement patterns, understanding and creating new neurological pathways for effective functioning. At this early stage of rehab, I had to adapt fast to the side effects that may be present depending on the area of brain damage, which made each treatment unique and patient specific.
• Chest Physiotherapy
• New Somerset Hospital
• General chest infections, metastatic and TB related cases were seen, here I was able to practice and implement effective infection control measures. Modalities included manual chest physiotherapy where allowed such as percussions, shaking and vibrations. As well as making and distributing PEP bottles, teaching deep breathing exercises with or without available equipment such as spirometers, postural drainage and cardiovascular training was also commenced.
• Other places of practice: GSH Neuro ICU, Brooklyn Chest Hospital, Mahatma Ghandi Hospital (paediatric ward)
• Academic transcripts available on request