DPT Portfolios

Professional Goal Statement

Upon graduation from UNC’s Doctor of Physical Therapy program, my goal is to enter the physical therapy field as a pediatric physical therapist. Through my coursework and clinical rotations, my love for pediatrics has only grown. I love that as a pediatric therapist, I will be able to combine my knowledge of the musculoskeletal, neurological, cardiopulmonary, and other systems while working with children and infants to progress through motor development. I hope to gain further experience in various pediatric settings. Additionally, I hope to empower and educate patients and their parents/caregivers to help them to meet their goals and improve their function and quality of life. Furthermore, I would like to continue to grow professionally, by maintaining my membership with the APTA, and joining the Pediatric Section and SIGs within it. I would also like to become a Clinical Instructor, which will allow me to assist in the education of future students. I also plan to attend APTA conferences, such as the Combined Sections Meeting or the APTA NC Annual Conference, which will allow me opportunities to network and learn from other members of the profession.

Career Plan

Experience

• August 2014 – May 2018 – Graduated Summa Cum Laude from NC State University, with a BS in Biological Sciences with concentration in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology and minors in Spanish and Nutrition
• June 2018 – May 2019 – Data Technician at Institute for Medical Research – Durham VA Medical Center
• May 2019 – June 2020 – Data Technician Manager at Institute for Medical Research – Durham VA Medical Center
• August 2020-Present – Doctor of Physical Therapy – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Clinical Education

• June 2021-August 2021 (8 weeks): Outpatient Orthopedics – Wayne UNC Orthopedic Physical Therapy – Goldsboro, NC
• February 2022-April 2022 (8 weeks): Acute Care – UNC Hillsborough – Hillsborough, NC
• April 2022-June 2022 (8 weeks): Pediatric Acute Care – NC Children’s Hospital – Chapel Hill, NC
• May-July 2023 (12 weeks): Outpatient Pediatrics – Pediatric Therapy Associates, Cary, NC

Activities

• Allied Health Ambassador – 2020-Present
  • High School Outreach Committee 2020-2022
    • High School Outreach Committee Chair – 2021-2022
  • Tech Committee – 2020-2023
• Student Health Action Coalition
  • Student Representative – January 2021-January 2022
• SPTA Sunshine Committee 2020-2022
  • Sunshine Committee Co-Chair 2021-2022
• Therapy Aide – 2022-2023
  • Worked with 2 different individuals in the community to help them to complete their HEP, provided by their physical therapists, consistently and safely

Electives

Fall:

• PHYT 754: Research Elective (2 credits)
  • Faculty Advisor: Dana McCarty
  • I worked on a research project related to cranial molding abnormalities for infants in the NICU. For this project, I screened patients in the NICU to determine who fit the criteria for the study. I went into the NICU a few times per month to collect head measurements. I used this data to calculate Cranial Index and Cranial Vault Asymmetry Index for each patient. I also completed chart reviews for demographic and comorbidity data for each patient that was included. Lastly, I participated in the early stages of a systematic review, helping with title/abstract screening, full text review, and data extraction review.
• PHYT 880 – Child and Family Assessment and Intervention

Spring:

• PHYT 870 – Integrated Clinical Experience
  • Outpatient Orthopedics with Josh Torrey
• PHYT 800 – Teacher Scholar
  • PHYT 701; Faculty Mentor: Cathy Howes

Future Goals

• July 2023: Pass the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE)
• July 2023: Earn Doctor of Physical Therapy from UNC Chapel Hill
• September 2023: Obtain full time employment in outpatient pediatric setting
• February 2024: Attend the Combined Sections Meeting in Boston, MA and present my capstone research project
• 2024 and beyond:
  • Become an APTA-certified Clinical Instructor and take on my first student
  • Obtain sufficient experience to sit for Pediatric Certified Specialist exam
  • Attend conferences as opportunities for education, continuing education, and networking
  • Take continuing education courses which will help me to continue to grow as a clinician
  • Obtain experience teaching in DPT or PTA programs

Self Assessment

• Strengths
  • Empathy and compassion
  • Communication and ability to adjust language based on audience
  • Time management and organizational skills
  • Creativity with interventions
  • Management and leadership experience
• Areas for Professional Development
  • Involvement with APTA
  • Patient and caregiver education skills with attention to health literacy
  • Evaluation and treatment of complex patient cases
  • Understanding of financial aspects of PT, such as billing and coding

 

Objectives

• Graduate and earn DPT degree from UNC Chapel Hill
• Pass NPTE and become a licensed physical therapist
• Obtain employment as a pediatric physical therapist
• Become a clinical instructor
• Maintain membership with APTA

 

Specific Strategies

• Complete terminal clinical experience in pediatric setting, to continue to hone skills working with this population and gain more exposure to various conditions and treatments
• Prepare for NPTE by employing various study strategies, review books (Scorebuilders & TherapyEd), review courses (TherapyEd), practice questions (PT 365 app, Kyle Rice podcast), practice exams (review books, PEAT)
• Complete coursework to become an APTA credentialed CI
• Take continuing education coursework that will help expand on the knowledge I gained during the DPT curriculum
• Get involved with NC APTA

Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Reflection

Beginning the DPT program in the middle of 2020 meant that justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion were at the forefront of many of our minds. We were still in the early days of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the United States was undergoing a massive social justice movement. Around the same time, I read several books which were very important to my development as a physical therapist. First, as part of a book club at work, I read Black Man in a White Coat by Dr. Damon Tweedy. This memoir, written by a psychiatrist who was trained at, and currently works at Duke University, discusses his journey to become a physician, as a Black man, as well as the health disparities often faced my minority patients. In preparation for starting physical therapy school, I also read Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People. This book requires readers to take several Implicit Association Tests (IATs) developed by researchers at Harvard University and helps readers to understand how their implicit biases can affect their behavior. This experience allowed me to recognize that we all have certain biases, which may be rooted in our background and things we have experienced. The important thing is that we recognize this, and work to eliminate our biases. I also read The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, tells the story of a young Hmong child, with severe epilepsy, and highlights the importance of cultural competence in healthcare.

As a future physical therapist, who will be working with patients with a wide range of diverse backgrounds, reading these books helped me to start my journey to becoming a physical therapist with the mindset of becoming a culturally competent therapist who strives to treat all patients to the best of my abilities, being sure not to allow biases to affect how patients are treated. I have been able to work in a variety of settings, in both rural and suburban settings, which has allowed me to work with a diverse range of patients. As I prepare to enter the workforce as a clinician, I will work to incorporate the lessons I have learned into my practice. Throughout PT school, we have learned about the importance of advocacy, both for our patients and for our profession. While we as individuals may not be able to dismantle the disparities faced by many of our patients, we can still work hard every day to provide individualized care to each of our patients, and treat them to the best of our abilities.

Product Examples:

• Capstone Project (products linked on website)
  • Predictors of Cranial Molding Deformities in Preterm Infants
  • Faculty Mentor: Dr. Dana McCarty
  • https://dptcapstone.web.unc.edu/2023/04/26/predictors-of-cranial-molding-deformities-in-preterm-infants/
• Critically Appraised Topic: Cranial Molding Deformities and Positional Preferences in Neonatal Intensive Care Units

 

Reflective Statement

Looking back at the past three years of physical therapy school, I cannot believe how much I have grown. While starting PT school in the middle of a global pandemic, brought many unexpected challenges, I am so proud of everything I have achieved. The rigorous curriculum, busy schedule, and constant changes occurring in the healthcare system and across the world in general, resulted in three challenging but rewarding years. I have gained so much confidence in my skills as a clinician, while also learning that I will not always know everything, and that is okay. I am so grateful for the expertise and guidance of our amazing faculty members and all the excellent clinical instructors that I have worked with. It has been a privilege to learn from leaders in our field, who are so passionate about mentoring the newest generation of physical therapists.

Through my clinical experiences, I have been able to explore all of my interests and hone my skills. I have gained so much from this program and my love for physical therapy, especially pediatrics, has grown exponentially. I am so excited to see where the future takes me. While I would like to start in the outpatient setting, I hope to explore other pediatric settings during my career, including early intervention, acute care, and the NICU. I love the diversity of patients that are seen in the pediatric setting, as well as the creativity that comes with pediatrics. I see myself as a lifelong learner and hope to continue to grow as a clinician throughout my career. I am so grateful to our faculty and staff, my clinical instructors, and of course, my wonderful classmates, who have all helped me to get to where I am today.

 

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