CSM 2019 was bustling with more than 16,500 PTs, PTAs and students. The Walter E. Washington Convention Center was packed with PT professionals wanting to progress their careers through educational sessions, networking and Academy/Section events. The halls were filled with conversations regarding our profession and there was one that seemed to be the loudest: the American Board of…
Will Residency and Fellowship Programs Survive?
The Problem
As many of you may know, there have been several changes in the policies that ABPTRFE have put into place over the past year. I, along with many other leaders within the post-professional world, have recently been outspoken on some of these issues. In summary, ABPTRE now has the following policies:
Item 13.4 “Change in Curriculum…
To Catch a Predator – PT Version
Halloween has come and past, however it seems that there is still a “spookiness” in the air. Word on the street is that manual therapy can raise the dead.
For those that have seen the recent issue of JOSPT probably have seen the editorial published by our friends Chad Cook, Josh Cleland and Paul Mintken. The title: “Manual Therapy Cures…
Annual Performance Reviews Are a Waste of Time
Annual performance reviews. We have all experienced them at some point. The seemingly endless amount of paperwork where you and your superior have to use some sort of scale to quantify your effectiveness in the work place. This has had me thinking for years: Are these annual performance reviews effective? Are they worth the time and effort?
Are Annual…
Pain Education in an Acute Care Setting – A Patient Story to Read!
This Feature Friday post is one of my favorites. It is a patient story involving the application of pain neuroscience education in an acute care setting written to ISPI faculty member Kory Zimney. Please take a read – it will brighten up your Friday. Remember, what we do as PTs is important and can make a difference in someone’s life…
Primary Care Specialty in PT? Is Now the Time?
Primary Care.
It is a phrase often heard within the medical field, but is now getting more buzz within physical therapy. With the trending shortage in physician primary care, is this the time to develop a specialty practice within physical therapy?
Over the past year or so, I have had the privilege to work with an outstanding group of individuals…
Residency Training in PT – Are We Prepared for the Future?
Residency training in PT isn’t anything new in our profession. There are well over 150 programs out there and a number of applicants that are looking to progress their professional careers after PT school. Last year, there was a lot of chatter on the idea behind mandatory residencies (read here, here, and here). In late 2017, the APTA Board…
PTAs and Joint Mobilization – A Follow Up.
I wanted write a follow-up to last week’s blog that I wrote. I knew it would create discussion and wanted to tie up some of what I have gleaned from the conversation. It has been great to get historical perspectives, economic perspectives as well as professional perspectives that add to the depth of this topic.
Some folks have…
PTAs and Joint Mobilization – Where Are We Today?
The Debate
The topic of physical therapist assistants (PTAs) performing joint mobilizations has been one that is not new to this profession. It is one that often causes the hair to raise on the necks of both manual therapists and PTAs alike. There is a deep history of where this debate has come, but recently it has been conversations with…

Three Ways to Get The Most Out of The Align Conference
The Align Conference (@align_conf) is finally upon us. This week, hundreds of rehab professionals will converge on downtown Denver for one of my favorite conferences of the year. The location alone is awesome. The conference will focus on topics such as neuropathic pain, radiculopathy, neurodynamics and calming a sensitized nervous system. We are privileged to have Michel Coppieters and Michael…