Building a community of sole practitioners

I started my physiotherapy training 40 years ago. Since then, I’ve been proud to call myself a chartered physiotherapist: I remember when physiotherapy was not a protected title, and being chartered was the way to distinguish ourselves as having had appropriate training to be working in the NHS and be registered with the predecessor of the HCPC.

I have used the CSP for advice and guidance in the past, most notably when threatened with litigation, and witnessed the work it has done to progress our profession and enable it to evolve.

Prior to moving to the far north of Scotland in 2020, I was a partner in a largish private practice in Surrey, where teamwork was integral. It wasn’t until I moved to Scotland that I realised just how much I missed the advice and support of my colleagues around me. Not only was I a new sole practitioner, I was also geographically remote.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, I found the Facebook group now known as the MSK Hub, which gave so many of us support and help and continues to do so regardless of the size of practice.

It started with one post…

I recently learned that the HCPC are revising their physiotherapy standards from September this year. Having had a long career in physio, and feeling somewhat isolated, I wondered whether it was time for me to hang up my boots.

Being self-employed seems to create a disproportionate amount of paperwork at times, and I just felt overwhelmed.

Wondering if there were any other sole practitioners who felt like me and wanted to work together to look at the revised standards and understand how they affected us, I posted anonymously on the Facebook group.

Within 24 hours, I had over 100 of responses from people in a similar position to me, who were having similar feelings of dread. Together, we supported each other. Discovering just how many other physios felt the same way was hugely reassuring.

After this, Jo Turner and Jack Chew – who lead the MSK Hub – challenged me on what was next. They linked with the HCPC and the CSP to arrange a member webinar which over 800 people attended live and a further 2,250 watched later.

However, it was clear there was a distinct need for better support for all those physiotherapists who choose to go it alone, want to do the very best by their patients yet feel isolated.

Risotto peer support groups

In response, we created the solo physiotherapy hub as a space for us to come together and support each other.

We now have over 750 members. We have established ‘risotto peer support groups’ which have over 200 participants; so-called because, like a recipe, we all bring different experiences and skills to the overall group or resulting recipe.

These groups bring clinicians with different levels of business and clinical experience together to facilitate peer discussion and share ideas, problems and guidance

The groups are self-directing. The members of the groups decide how often they meet, what their goals are, and what the agenda is for each online meeting.

Room to grow

We have only started this year and are in our infancy, and we know is we have only accessed a small proportion of potential members. We welcome any sole physio practitioners.

Do join us if you are a sole practitioner and would like a safe space to raise anything that particularly pertains to this small but important group of individuals.

As one member put it, ‘just wanted to say how very much myself and those in our “risotto group” I’m in are appreciating our monthly meeting. Such a great idea.”’

We might be on our own, but we can be here for each other.