I have recently returned to Dublin from Seville after 6 months on secondment at Oncoavanze, a private clinical facility which provides oncology services to the people of Seville. The last 6 months has seen me interact and provide exercise rehabilitation services to oncology patients who have completed or are undergoing chemotherapy for a variety of cancer types. This rehabilitation service involved the use of electrical stimulation (NMES) to augment their rehab and improve mu

In a nutshell, the life of a PhD researcher involves around: 1) learning your area, 2) learning how to carry out research 3) presenting at academic conferences, and 4) writing research papers. Now for some this might sound boring. Luckily there is a little more to it than this such as travelling the world, meeting experts in their field and flexible working hours. So, to do number 1, we must first do number 2, 3 and 4. To be able to carry out points 3 and 4, we must generate

On my previous blog post I wrote about the start of my secondment at Oncoavanze – the oncologic clinic in Seville. I was there for 2 months and designed a study which aims at getting insight from cancer patients regarding technology and physical activity, more specifically about their preferences and thoughts regarding certain functionalities in physical activity coaching apps. While the protocol is still under revision, which might take a couple of months, I’ve decided to mo

What is an Irish physiotherapist doing working in an eHealth technology company in Spain? Yep, here I am, starting the second year of my PhD with a 12-month secondment to Salumedia Tecnologías in Seville. I've only been here for two weeks, but let's see if I can use what I've learnt so far to answer some FAQs… Let’s go! OK Louise, what's a secondment? “secondment səˈkɒndm(ə)nt/ noun BRITISH the temporary transfer of an official or worker to another position or employment” A

When I first came to work with physical activity in the CATCH project I came across the Nordic Walking (NW) program of Oncoavanze Clinic, my host institution to develop the research. The program is coordinated by one of my supervisors, Prof. Dr. Matilde Mora, from University of Seville and VidaON association. Surprised to encounter this activity for the first time and especially in Seville, a city that has nothing of Nordic, I tried to learn more about NW and then I understoo