Feb 25 2013

Eyler, Megan

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The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Doctor of Physical Therapy

Doctoral Portfolio

Megan Eyler

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Professional Goal Statement

My goal is to become a well rounded and innovative physical therapist whose clinical practice is founded on evidenced based practice and providing individualized patient care. I hope to demonstrate compassion for patient’s values, grow from clinical experience and become a life-long learner.  As a DPT student I have been fortunate to have four incredible clinical instructors who have helped me improve my knowledge, clinical reasoning skills and confidence immensely. I hope to one day to be able to return these favors bestowed upon me and mentor students as they progress through the DPT program. My current interests are in inpatient rehabilitation and vestibular disorders and I hope to further develop my skills and knowledge in these areas as a practicing physical therapist.

 

Proposed Career Path 

•Bachelors of Science in Biology; Minors Chemistry and Business Administration, UNC Chapel Hill 2008
•Volunteer serving underserved communities at local clinic and/or health fairs (to continue)
•APTA and NCPTA Member (to continue)
•Earn DPT degree, UNC Chapel Hill August 2013
•Pass licensure exam, August 2013
•Work 1-2 years in an inpatient hospital setting that offers mentorship program. Ideally, in a healthcare center that includes Spanish-speaking population.
•? Traveling physical therapy; 1-2 years
•Develop specialized knowledge and practice of treating vestibular disorders through:
          -? Neuromuscular Residency program
                                 AND/OR
          -Herdman’s Vestibular course to become Vestibular Competent
•Establish or join private outpatient clinic that treats large population of patients with vestibular disorders

Self-Assessment

Strengths Areas for Professional Development
Interpersonal skills, positivity, professionalism In general, a greater depth and breath of clinical experience and clinical reasoning.
Internal drive and strong work ethic Leadership and public speaking skills
Organizational skills Multi-tasking capabilities efficient handling of clinical responsibilities.
Able to efficiently synthesize current research to guide clinical practice Manual physical therapy techniques 
Able to select and use of functional outcome measures in practice Increased depth of knowledge of vestibular disorders and treatment
Experience of providing physical therapy services abroad and contacts established to continue involvement Progressing from conversational Spanish to proficiency in Spanish for provision of Physical Therapy services to Spanish speaking patients
Relationships with many amazing physical therapy colleagues UNC PT alumni network Improved understanding of dynamic health care policy surrounding PT profession and implications on a PT owned practice.

 

Objectives

1.Graduate from UNC Chapel Hill DPT program.

2. Prepare for and pass National Physical Therapy Exam.

3. Obtain inpatient or inpatient/outpatient combination job offering strong mentorship program.

4. Develop vestibular experience through residency and/or attending Susan Herdman’s Vestibular Competency Course.

5. Advance PT profession through mentoring of DPT students, participation in NCPTA and APTA and community health clinics and programs.

 

Specific Strategies

1.    Develop comprehensive study plan to guide preparation for NPTE while ensuring high performance during clinical experience and final UNC DPT coursework.

2.    Allot sufficient time for thorough job search, to ensure that I select job that is a good fit for my personal and professional goals.

3.    Seek out opportunities to develop my manual physical therapy skills, knowledge of practice of vestibular rehabilitation and leadership and public speaking skills.

 

Courses, Electives and Doctoral Project

PHYT 875: Advanced Orthopedic Assessment

This elective advanced my knowledge of the composition, destruction and healing of soft tissues and bone and PT rehabiliation implications. A common thread in many lectures was the destructive effects of glucocortcoids on various tissues and I investigated their effects on bone in my course paper titled “Glucocorticoid-Induced Osteoporosis“.

PUBH 614 & 615: Intermediate and Advanced Spanish for Healthcare Professionals (Fall 2012 and Spring 2013)

I choose to take a year of medical Spanish to build upon my conversational Spanish.  Each semester I was placed in a small interdisciplinary class of pharmacy, medical, social work, speech and occupational therapy students in order to improve my written and verbal command of Spanish related to delivery of health services. This course proved to be very helpful during the Service Learning Trip to Guatemala.

PHYT 895: Service Learning Trip to Guatemala

I travelled with 14 of my classmates and several UNC faculty and practicing physical therapists to serve patients in Antigua, Guatemala and surrounding towns.  I worked alongside Guatemalan physical therapists and physical therapists students to treat patients in Las Obras Hospital, performed blood pressure screens during a health fair and provided PT screens for children with disabilities. I grew from this experience in more ways that I thought possible and left knowing that I wish to travel and volunteer as a PT internationally in the future.

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PHYT 824: Health and Wellness

My classmate, Kendall Schlossberg, and I performed a needs assessment which revealed that Robeson County continues to have one of the highest rates of Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) in North Carolina.   We developed a comprehensive health promotion intervention plan to educate  residents of Robeson County with tools and information to better help them prevent and manage CAD.

PHYT 752: Evidence-Based Practice II

In order to further explore my interest in vestibular disorders I elected to investigate the PICO question, “In patients with vertigo due to peripheral vestibular impairments, does the addition of vestibular-specific exercises to standard medical care result in reduced symptoms of imbalance and increased functional mobility?”. Upon reviewing current literature on this topic I completed a evidence table and research summary  describing my findings and areas where future research is needed.

Doctoral Project

My doctoral project grew from my interest in further developing my understanding of vestibular disorders and vestibular rehabilitation. I developed a educational module addressing basic anatomy and physiology of peripheral vestibular system, differential diagnosis of dizziness and etiologies and physical therapy treatment of unilateral peripheral vestibular hypofunction. A more detailed description of my project, the resources developed and evaluation are all available on the UNC DPT Capstone website, http://dptcapstone.web.unc.edu/2013/02/25/eyler-megan/.

 

Reflection

The past three years have been an incredible journey. I have grown more personally, academically and professionally than I thought  possible. Even though I approach the end of a rigorous education at UNC (seven years total!), I find myself even more excited to seek opportunities to continue to learn and grow as a physical therapist.  I feel confident that UNC has granted me the knowledge, skills and experiences I will need to start a successful career and that I have a solid plan of action upon which to begin.  I have been surrounded by incredible classmates and faculty through this experience and a large part of me will be sad to say goodbye, but at the same time I am excited to start my next chapter.

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2 responses so far




2 Responses to “Eyler, Megan”

  1.   Sadyeon 24 Jun 2013 at 10:09 pm

    Hi Megan,

    First, I recognize that picture! And I am excited that you continue to have a goal of developing your Spanish speaking skills to provide clinical services to that population.

    Second, I really appreciate the breadth of experiences you shared – it is exciting that you were able to focus your time and energy into several different areas. Moreover, it further highlights your desire to specialize in vestibular as a decision that you have/are invested in after being exposed to other areas.

    Any desire to travel/work in Antigua?

    I look forward to seeing you graduate!

    Sadye

    Reply

  2.   Lisa Johnstonon 27 Jun 2013 at 6:19 pm

    Megan:
    Congratulations on an excellent portfolio which demonstrates the range of your many accomplishments. You have worked hard and done a lot of great things. I am excited to have had the opportunity to travel with you. You really did an amazing job, and maybe we will even get to see you back on the trip in the future.
    Lisa

    Reply

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