Eoin O'Conaire The Shoulder Masterclass. An evidence-based approach to assessment, clinical reasoning & management of shoulder disorders: 07 November 2026

The Shoulder Masterclass

An evidence-based approach to assessment, clinical reasoning & management of shoulder disorders

This highly practical two-day intensive equips you with a clear, structured framework to confidently assess and manage shoulder pain.

Rather than relying on isolated special tests, this course teaches you how to think. This postgraduate-level course develops advanced clinical reasoning capabilities in the assessment and management of shoulder pain within a structured, evidence-based framework

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The programme is designed to strengthen higher-order diagnostic thinking through systematic pattern recognition and collaborative clinical reasoning. Participants refine their ability to synthesise subjective and objective data, generate and modify hypotheses, and make defensible clinical decisions across the spectrum of shoulder presentations.

You’ll learn to rapidly differentiate between:

• Stiff shoulders (e.g. frozen shoulder, OA, ACJ)
• Weak shoulders (rotator cuff spectrum, biceps, major ruptures)
• Wobbly shoulders (instability across the Stanmore spectrum)
• Systemic inflammatory presentations
• “Not a shoulder” problems (cervical referral, sensitisation, fracture, red flags)

Using a structured pattern-recognition and collaborative reasoning model, you’ll refine your ability to:

• Assess accurately within an evidence-based framework
• Decide when to treat, investigate, or refer
• Integrate psychosocial drivers into your reasoning
• Build rehabilitation strategies that patients actually follow

Emphasis is placed on:

• Advanced information processing and interpretation
• Hypothesis generation and iterative refinement
• Critical differentiation between physiotherapy management, non-physiotherapy management, investigation, and onward referral
• Integration of psychosocial drivers within assessment and management
• Patient-centred collaborative decision-making to enhance self-efficacy and adherence

Practical components include structured instability assessment, structural laxity evaluation, motor control analysis, kinetic chain assessment, scapular stability evaluation, proprioceptive testing, and the application of “improvement testing” to guide intervention planning

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Management is framed as a reasoned progression from assessment findings, with particular focus on rehabilitation strategy development and structured treatment planning.

By completion, participants demonstrate:

• Critical evaluation of shoulder presentations
• Justified and safe clinical decision-making
• Integration of complex biopsychosocial variables
• Application of evidence-informed rehabilitation strategies
• Reflective practice aimed at continuous professional development

The course is intended for clinicians seeking to elevate their shoulder practice beyond protocol-driven assessment toward defensible, adaptive, and patient-centred clinical expertise.

You’ll work through clinical scenarios, practical examination strategies, instability assessment, motor control evaluation, scapular and kinetic chain considerations, and structured treatment planning.

This is not a test-heavy course. It’s a thinking course.

You’ll leave with:

• A clear clinical classification framework
• Safer decision-making pathways
• Improved patient collaboration
• Practical rehab strategies you can implement immediately

And yes — you’ll do something different in clinic on Monday.

Learning goals

• Accurate and effective assessment of the shoulder in an evidence-based framework
• Structured clinical reasoning with an emphasis on collaborative decision-making with the patient
• Safe and judicious clinical decision-making: physiotherapy Vs non-physiotherapy management Vs investigate Vs onward referral
• Effective management of shoulder disorders – physiotherapy and non-physiotherapy management
• Focus on rehabilitation strategies
• Emphasis on patient values, encouraging compliance, management of “the difficult patient”