Apr 20 2017

Shelton, Tyler

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  • Professional Goal Statement
    • My goal is to become a successful physical therapist, with the well-rounded skill set to provide rehabilitation to patients in a variety of settings. I plan to gain experience that will allow me to provide optimal skilled services for athletes and patients with musculoskeletal pathologies in the orthopedic settings. I will seek out continuing education opportunities in order to constantly improve my abilities. After several years of practice, I plan to become a clinical instructor and possibly open a private practice.
  • Career Plan
    • May 2014 – BA in Exercise and Sport Science from UNC Chapel Hill
    • March 2017 – Pass Comprehensive Exam for UNC DPT program
    • July 2017 – Pass NC state board exam to become licensed PT
    • August 2017 – Employment at either a sports orthopedic clinic or general outpatient orthopedic clinic
    • January 2018 – In my clinic of employment, acquire funding to set up and operate orthotic fabrication/assessment station
    • October 2018 – Fulfill all requirements for OCS program
    • November 2018 – Pass orthopedic specialization exam
    • 2019 – become clinical instructor
    • 2020 – managerial position in Sports PT Clinic
    • 2028 – Private Sports Ortho Clinic Owner
  • Self-Assessment
    • Strengths
      • Significant outpatient neuro experience with complex patient populations
      • Significant outpatient orthopedic clinical experience, specifically with ACL reconstruction rehabilitation
      • Experience working in a hospital setting with an interdisciplinary approach to patient care.
      • Experience integrating aquatic physical therapy into a patient’s treatment plan to provide optimal patient rehabilitation
      • Experience with high-level athletes in sports orthopedic clinic
    • Areas for Professional Development
      • Expand knowledge of business practices and insurance aspect of physical therapy (i.e., billing, coding, marketing)
      • Develop a better understanding of outcome measures and their clinical application, especially in the acute setting
      • Stronger background in working with patients with concussion in the outpatient setting
    • Objectives
      • Prepare and sit for the exam for Board Certification in Physical Therapy
      • Develop orthopedic skills by taking advanced orthopedic and ICE electives, pursuing continuing education courses relevant to my professional goals, and pursuing an OCS certification.
      • Develop managerial skills and physical therapy expertise necessary to allow me to open a successful private sports ortho clinic.
    • Specific strategies for addressing your development needs and interests
      • Complete an elective course in advanced orthopedics to further develop my knowledge of higher level orthopedic injuries/impairments
      • Complete an elective course that allows me to shadow outpatient orthopedic physical therapists in the clinic in order to improve my experience in the setting
      • Identify continuing education opportunities that will allow me to expand my knowledge on PT for neurological impairments (ImPACT certification), both in the outpatient athletic and hospital setting
      • Develop a doctoral project that addresses the efficacy of orthoses on patients with more advanced LE malalignments (i.e., spasticity, congenital deformities, etc.)
      • Develop a plan to study for the PT Board Exam
      • Develop an inservice learning experience on the merits of orthotic fabrication for both the patient and the providing clinic
      • Identify continuing education opportunities that will allow me to expand my intervention repertoire in the outpatient sports orthopedic setting (i.e., dry needling, blood flow restriction training, and kinesio taping)
      • Complete pre-requisites and necessary experience to gain admittance into a sports clinical residency
      • Develop a plan to study for the OCS exam
      • Identify a professional mentor that will help me develop a working understanding of operating a private clinic
    • A specific outline of your plans for electives and capstone project
      • Elective
        • I enrolled in an Advanced Orthopedic elective course to help develop my skills and understanding of working with higher level orthopedic patients. I chose assignments that expanded my knowledge of sports injury examination, prevention, and rehabilitation.
      • Elective
        • I enrolled in 120 hours of the Integrated Clinical Experience elective course to improve my ability to operate efficiently in outpatient orthopedic settings. Specifically, I chose to expand my understanding of lower quarter screening with orthotic fabrication/application. Furthermore, I worded in a general outpatient orthopedic setting that allowed me to hone my skills at orthopedic evals and treatment.
      • Capstone:
        • The purpose of my capstone project is to determine immediate effects of orthosis with heel lift on balance and gait in boys with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. The content of this project will be directed towards entry level students. I am choosing this population because I feel it is important to educate future clinicians on the efficacy of orthoses for patients with more severe lower extremity functional malalignments (i.e., DMD, stroke, or TBI).
  • Product examples:
  • Reflection:
    • As I approach the end of the DPT program, I am thankful for the opportunities that were provided to me by my professors and fellow classmates that played an essential role in developing my abilities as a physical therapist. Thus far, I have been able to make great progress towards my professional development goals. The elective courses I have taken in the 3rd year of the program have improved my overall capabilities while operating in the outpatient orthopedic setting. The capstone project improved my skills at lower quarter screening and allowed me to test the use of orthoses for patients with more advanced LE malalignments. I am currently studying for the board exam, which I am signed up to take on July 19th. Afterwards, I will begin searching for jobs that allow me to apply the outpatient orthopedic skills I earned in a sports setting. Once employed, I will pursue continuing education opportunities to further my development as a young professional. I also hope to develop an inservice learning opportunity that allows me to establish an orthotic fabrication station, in order to utilize the skills I developed in this area. I could not be more gracious of the unwavering support I have received over the past 3 years. The UNC DPT staff is full of wonderful, inspirational individuals that I hope to model myself after as a physical therapist.

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