Reflections of Dr. Bruno Mazuquin host of the 2023 PRS scientific conference

These are some reflections on my experience as a host of the 2023 scientific meeting of the Physiotherapy Research Society.

I am a physiotherapist and research fellow at the Department of Health Professions, Manchester Metropolitan University. I joined the Physiotherapy Research Society Executive Committee in March 2022, one month away from the annual scientific meeting that was held in Kent. Following another successful year of the Physiotherapy Research Society running its annual event, I offered to host it in 2023. This was a great opportunity to bring a prestigious event to the Manchester Metropolitan University. I was thrilled that the Executive Committee accepted my proposal.

The theme was ‘Implementation and Impact’.

We invited four keynote speakers to hear more about their outstanding work:

• Professor Gill Yeowell, Manchester Metropolitan University, was the first speaker. She talked about their project on Cauda Equina Syndrome and litigation. She highlighted how there is a lack of information to support physiotherapists who are facing litigation in the UK. Their fantastic work is now changing policy.
• Professor Louise Connell, University of Lancaster and East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, closed the morning session. She presented her spectacular research on helping patients who had a stroke and implementing research in clinical practice.
• The afternoon sessions started with Professor Cormac Ryan, Teesside University. He showed their amazing Flippin’ Pain campaign and how they are bringing research closer to people and positively impacting those suffering from chronic pain.
• Professor Krysia Dziedzic, Keele University, was the final speaker. She presented their experience with the Keele Impact Accelerator Unit, which brings patients and the public very close to help co-producing their research to maximise implementation and impact.

We also had B. Mure live capturing and illustrating what was going on through the day.

The 2023 scientific meeting had a record-breaking number of abstracts submitted! There were more than 80 delegates. We had 15 oral presentations and over 30 posters, with presenters ranging from students of all levels to Professors. The abstracts will be published in the Journal Physical Therapy Reviews. Among the abstract presenters were five clinicians who were supported by the Physiotherapy Research Society. They were selected to take part in a training programme with a series of workshops about systematic reviews. They received a bursary and the plan was for them to develop a systematic review on a topic of their choice, culminating in a presentation at the 2023 scientific meeting. If you want to read more about the 'PRS Systematic Reviews Project', please click here.

The range of topics made the sessions interactive and we all benefited from learning more from rehabilitation for patients with cancer, musculoskeletal and neurological problems to new tools such as virtual reality. Organising the conference was hard work. However, it was rewarding to see how well it went; thanks to our fantastic executive committee and colleagues from the Manchester Metropolitan University conference team.

Our sponsors (Delsys and Summit Medical & Scientific) were showcasing their innovative biomechanics and rehabilitation tools.

They were crucial for the event and made it possible to offer prizes for best oral presentation, poster and networking award.

• Dr Anna Anderson, University of Leeds, won the Best Oral Presentation Award with her study "Development of a pre-operative knee replacement ‘Virtual Knee School’: lessons learned for developing inclusive digital tools."

• Nathan Skidmore, Teesside University, won the Best Poster Presentation Award with his study "Virtual Reality for pain-related health literacy."

• Lisa Pitt, University Hospitals Derby and Burton, won the Networking Award with an influence score of 54 (there is no upper limit to this score, the higher the better).

I was inspired by the outstanding research presented and how welcoming the Physiotherapy Research Society and its annual event is, especially for those who are starting their journeys. There is an excellent video from the CSP Student Reference Group Lead, Laura Blackburn, telling her and other delegates' experience of the scientific meeting. You can watch it here: 

I am suspicious of saying that it was a fantastic event, but it really was. I hope you can join us at AECC University College, Bournemouth on the 12th of April 2024! Keep an eye on our website and our social media channels for key dates for the 2024 conference.

If you want to get a discount to register for our conferences and get access to exclusive material have a look at our memberships.

Author: Dr Bruno Mazuquin, Research Fellow at Manchester Metropolitan University and Organiser of PRS 2023 Conference X @B_Mzqn