Why More Exercise Physiologists Should Consider Aged Care

I get it. You spend three years doing a Sport and Exercise Science degree, learning all the cool anatomy, physiology and sports-sciencey stuff. Cool. Then you complete your Masters in Clinical Exercise Physiology, where suddenly you're learning about chronic disease, clinical management, exercise prescription and all the different populations you might work with.

Somewhere amongst all of that, you're also supposed to figure out what you actually want your career to look like.

For me, I was adamant I would work in a traditional clinic.

I'd completed a placement in one and thought, yep, this is for me. At that point in my studies, I honestly had no idea how broad the scope of an Accredited Exercise Physiologist (AEP) could be. In my mind, being an EP meant working in a clinic, seeing patients one-on-one and prescribing exercise.

Turns out, I was wrong. Very wrong.

My first taste of being an EP

Let's not get confused here - my time working clinically was incredibly valuable.

Being in a clinic as a new graduate taught me a huge amount about myself and the profession. I was exposed early to different health conditions, NDIS and Workers Compensation schemes, Medicare, reporting requirements and the realities of ongoing patient care.

Yes, you learn about these things at university to some extent, but I found that it wasn't until I was actually working within these systems that the information really stuck.

I was also lucky enough to have new-graduate mentoring. My reports and clinical work were reviewed, proofread and held to a professional standard. In a way, I still had someone watching over my shoulder while I figured out how to actually be an EP rather than just study to become one.

Eventually, I got used to clinic life.

Back-to-back patients. Short lunch breaks. Sometimes technically having a lunch break while simultaneously catching up on reports - so, really, not much of a break at all.

I had my regular patients who would turn up week after week. I also became very familiar with the repeat-offender no-shows and last-minute cancellations.

And I genuinely enjoyed it. I loved learning about people's experiences with injury, disease and exercise. I loved seeing people progress.

But I still felt like something was missing.

And for me, that was where aged care entered the chat.

"What have I done?"

I'll be honest: aged care was an adjustment.

I remember starting and thinking, what have I done?

The environment was completely different from the clinic I had come from - physically, socially and clinically. The clientele were different. The pace was different. The problems I was being asked to help solve were different.

For the first few months, I genuinely questioned whether I had made the wrong move.

Over time, I realised I had done the complete opposite.

One of the biggest differences for me was the sense of purpose. There is something incredibly rewarding about working with older adults who genuinely value your time, input and help.

The gratitude I experience working in aged care is something I hadn't experienced to the same degree before. Things we might consider small wins can mean an enormous amount to someone else.

Maintaining the ability to stand independently. Walking safely to the dining room. Building enough confidence to attend an exercise class. Maintaining mobility rather than watching it decline.

You quickly learn that progress doesn't always mean adding weight to an exercise or improving a test score.

Sometimes maintaining someone's current level of function is progress.

This is what multidisciplinary care actually looks like.

Another thing I never appreciated as a student was how multidisciplinary aged care really is.

I feel like I work right in the thick of the true-blue "multidisciplinary team".

On any given day I can be communicating with GPs, RNs, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech pathologists, dietitians, care staff and other health professionals.

You're contributing to decisions about someone's mobility, falls risk and their capacity to safely walk or transfer.

Equipment prescription? That was a new one.

Pressure injuries and pressure care? Definitely wasn't something I remember talking about much at uni.

Mechanical lifters and transfer equipment? Physio has entered the chat.

Palliative care? Definitely not something I thought I'd be exposed to as an EP. It taught me pretty quickly that exercise isn't always about progression. Sometimes our role shifts towards comfort, dignity and maintaining whatever independence we can - and knowing when not to push is just as important as knowing when to progress.

The learning curve was huge, but it also made me realise how much more there was to the EP profession than I had previously understood.

Most importantly, I work in an environment where I feel like my profession is understood, valued and respected.

The biggest skill isn't knowing the biggest words.

I do think having some clinical experience under your belt before moving into an environment like aged care can be incredibly beneficial.

My clinic experience helped develop my clinical reasoning, exercise rationale, communication and confidence before I stepped into a role where I was expected to make more independent decisions.

But the biggest skill I've developed throughout both roles is something university can only teach you so much about: people skills.

You can know every anatomical structure, pathology and fancy medical term imaginable, but if you can't communicate with the person sitting in front of you, you're going to struggle.

An 85-year-old living with dementia does not necessarily need a detailed explanation of their ankylosing spondylitis.

They need you to understand them.

How they communicate. What motivates them. What makes them laugh. What they can do today. When to push and when to change the plan completely.

Clinical knowledge is important, but knowing how to apply that knowledge to an actual human being is where the real skill comes in.

The lessons have gone well beyond exercise.

One of my favourite parts of aged care has absolutely nothing to do with exercise physiology.

It's the people.

Every day I hear another life story, piece of advice or completely unfiltered opinion from someone who has lived three or four times longer than I have.

Working with older people has genuinely changed the way I look at certain things.

I've learnt to simplify things. To stop overcomplicating situations that probably aren't that complicated. To appreciate what my body can do now. To listen to people whose experiences are completely different from my own.

I try to apply some of that perspective to both my career and my life - and so far, it's working pretty well.

Why I stayed

There are practical benefits too.

For me, moving into aged care came with higher pay than many traditional EP roles I had seen, greater job satisfaction and flexibility that works well for me as a mum.

But those things aren't the main reason I've stayed.

I've stayed because I feel useful.

I've stayed because I'm constantly learning.

I've stayed because I'm surrounded by other health professionals who value what Exercise Physiology can bring to the table.

And I've stayed because working with older adults has completely changed my understanding of what successful exercise intervention can look like.

If you'd told student-me that this was where I'd end up, I probably wouldn't have believed you.

Back then, I thought being an EP meant working in a clinic.

Now I know our profession can take us into spaces I didn't even know existed when I was studying.

And sometimes the career you never pictured yourself having ends up being the one that fits you best.