DPT Portfolios

Professional Goal

My goal is to become a highly skilled Doctor of Physical Therapy with a focus on treating patients with musculoskeletal conditions. I plan to become known for reliability and consistency in treating patients with all types of orthopedic dysfunctions, especially those that are sports-related. I will constantly strive to increase my skill set and bestow my ever-growing clinical expertise to current and future therapists.

Career Plan

Graduate with BS in Exercise Science from Brigham Young University – Idaho (December 2012)

Begin DPT program at UNC – Chapel Hill (August 2013)

Acute care rotation at Moore Regional Hospital in Pinehurst, NC (Summer 2014)

Outpatient orthopedic rotation at Trinity Wellness Center in Raleigh, NC (Spring 2015)

Inpatient Rehab rotation with neuro focus at UNC-Hospital in Chapel Hill, NC (Summer 2015)

Outpatient orthopedic rotation at ATI Physical Therapy in Carrboro, NC (Summer 2016)

Sit for the physical therapy licensure exam (July 2016)

Graduate with DPT from UNC-Chapel Hill (August 2016)

Begin working as an orthopedic-focused physical therapist in North Carolina (August 2016)

Become a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (Spring 2017)

Sit for the Orthopaedic Certified Specialist exam (Spring 2019)

Continue towards additional education and certifications (i.e. FMS, Dry Needling, IASTM, CMPT, etc.)

Build relationships with local athletic teams and become a preferred sports rehabilitation professional within the local community

Self-Assessment

Strengths

• Experience working with young athletes through several years of coaching
• As a father, I’ve been able to greatly improve time management and work/school/family balance
• Gained valuable life experience and Spanish fluency while serving a two-year church service mission

Areas for further development

• Additional manual therapy skills to utilize with a variety of orthopedic cases
• Improved understanding and familiarity of billing procedures and insurance policies
• Increase experience with independent clinical reasoning and decision making

Objectives

My special area of interest is in working with patients who have musculoskeletal problems, and I especially enjoy working with young athletes. I particularly enjoy utilizing manual therapy techniques in combination with sport-specific functional rehabilitative exercise.

1. Pass the NPTE July 2016
2. Graduate with a Doctorate of Physical Therapy August 2016
3. Begin full-time employment as a physical therapist in orthopedic setting

Strategic Plan

• Create a personalized study plan and take PT board exam in 2016
• Develop a doctoral project that would benefit me and other therapists in treating patients
• Continue pursuing further skill and knowledge throughout clinical rotations

Electives

PHYT 754 Research Experience

PHYT 870 Integrated Clinical Experience

PHYT 896 Interdisciplinary Service Learning Trip

Educational Products

Some of the materials that I have created that represent my growth as a student and future physical therapist are my Critically Appraised Topic (CAT) and my Capstone Project. This project included the creation of an abstract utilizing pilot data from a study examining the effects of physical therapy for patients with end-stage knee osteoarthritis. This can be accessed from the UNC PT Capstone Website, which also contains a link to my CAT paper.

Reflective Statement

I remember very well the time when I first began to consider becoming a physical therapist. Since that time several years ago in a high school sports medicine class, I have grown immensely as a student, future health care professional and well-rounded human being. The last several years in the Doctor of Physical Therapy program at UNC-Chapel Hill have been a roller coaster ride of challenges and triumphs. New to this part of the country, my family and I were immediately taken in as members of the UNC PT family. I am forever grateful for the kindness of my classmates, faculty, and other supportive individuals who have made our time in Chapel Hill so wonderful.

While I enjoy interacting with patients of with all kinds of backgrounds and conditions, I have developed a passion for working with people to recover from musculoskeletal injuries and dysfunctions. I am constantly amazed by the body’s ability to utilize the musculoskeletal system to perform daily activities, athletic feats, and to recover from injury. It is with excitement that I look forward to a lifelong journey of utilizing the knowledge and skills I have gained at UNC combined with future learning. Thank you to all those who have contributed to the solid foundation I have built over the last few years that will help me to optimize the physical function of many patients for years to come.

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