Rehabilitation and Therapy Commons^™

Early Career Physical Therapy Faculty Networking And Scholarly Productivity: A Mixed-Methods Study, Betsy J. Becker

Theses & Dissertations

While it is well-known that physical therapist (PT) faculty must retain a scholarly agenda, few report being activity engaged and many programs have low scholarly dissemination. There is evidence that knowledge of the make-up of a faculty network leads to improved performance and innovation. The purpose of this explanatory sequential mixed methods study was to explore agency (behaviors and perspectives about career advancement) and the professional network structure and composition of early career PT faculty as they relate to scholarly activity. This dissertation research study included 50 early career faculty who worked in accredited entry-level physical therapy programs.

The quantitative …

Shoulder-Specific Patient Reported Outcome Measures For Use In Patients With Head And Neck Cancer:An Assessment Of Reliability, Construct Validity, And Overall Appropriateness Of Test Score Interpretation Using Rasch Analysis, Melissa Michelle Eden

Department of Physical Therapy Student Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Context: Medical management for head and neck cancer (HNC) often includes neck dissection surgery, a side effect of which is shoulder dysfunction. There is no consensus for which patient-reported outcome measure (PRO) is most appropriate to quantify shoulder dysfunction in this population.

Objective: The aims of this research study were to: (1) use Rasch methodologies to assess construct validity and overall appropriateness of test score interpretation of Disability of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH), QuickDASH, Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (SPADI) and Neck Dissection Impairment Index (NDII) in the HNC population; (2) determine appropriateness of use of University of …

The Effect Of Patterned Sensory Enhancement On Balance And Ambulation In Persons Diagnosed With Parkinson’S Disease, Brittany Barko

Masters Theses

One rehabilitation protocol effective in delaying the symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is Lee Silverman Voice Training BIG (LSVT BIG), comprising pre-gait exercises and gait training. This study seeks to determine if combining Patterned Sensory Enhancement (PSE), a music therapy intervention, with LSVT BIG will improve quality of movement. During physical therapy sessions with three participants, a music therapist adapted the PSE stimuli to support each patient’s motor needs, which were then recorded on CD and sent with patients to exercise with at home. Results showed improved balance and ambulation comparing pre- and post- measures of the BERG balance scale …

Neuromuscular Adaptations Following Slope Walking In Individuals Post-Stroke, Eric Akoopie, Brooke Conway Kleven, Trisha Koch

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Background: The excitability of the H-reflex pathway in the non-impaired nervous system can be augmented by altering the different parameters of a walking task, specifically slope. We sought to examine the adaptations in soleus H-reflex excitability and foot force control following an acute bout of upslope or downslope treadmill walking in people post-stroke compared to those who are non- impaired. Methods: We recruited 12 individuals with chronic post-stroke hemiparesis and 9 age-similar non- neurologically impaired individuals. Each subject was tested over 2 sessions separated by at least 7 days. For each session, subjects walked at a self-selected walking speed on …

Immediate Effects Of Cervical Spine Thrust Joint Manipulation On Gait Parameters In Individuals With Neck Pain, Marc Anthony D. Albano, Emily Blok, Beau Gronert, Ryan Masuda

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Purpose/Hypotheses: 1. To investigate for any change in gait parameters in individuals with neck pain while walking with different functional neck conditions immediately following cervical thrust joint manipulation (TJM) versus a sham intervention. 2. To investigate any association between Global Rating of Change (GROC) scores and gait parameters immediately following cervical thrust joint manipulation versus a sham intervention. The hypotheses were that, a) cervical TJM would have an immediate effect on gait parameters during walking with the neck in at least one of three conditions (neutral, flexion/extension and rotation) among individuals with neck pain; and b) higher scores on the …

Successful Patient Participation In Acute Hospital Physical Therapy, Jesse Kim, Joseph Fertitta, Patrick Williams

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Purpose/Hypothesis: Research has demonstrated that physical therapy plays a crucial role in patient recovery in the acute hospital setting. Despite known benefits, scheduled sessions do not always occur and are called nontreatment (NT) events. Reported NT ranges from 15% to 26% of scheduled sessions. Previous studies have found an association between NT and patient diagnosis as well as between NT and day of the week on which treatment was scheduled. Identifying additional factors that affect NT is important if therapists and administrators are to make improvements. The purpose of this study is to determine if an association exists between physical …

Physical Therapy Review Of Best Practices Based On Psychology, Bethany Painter

Honors Projects

Physical therapy is a field that is growing and changing constantly. For so long, it was assumed that physical healing should be the sole focus of physical therapy. While this is an important aspect of the rehabilitation process, there is so much more to it than that. The psychological trauma a person may experience following an injury can be just as challenging, if not more challenging to overcome than the physical repercussions of the injury. For this reason, it is important to take psychological healing into consideration, as well as physical healing when creating best practices for physical therapists. The …

Diagnostic Musculoskeletal Imaging: How Physical Therapists Utilize Imaging In Clinical Decision-Making, Hilmir Agustsson

Department of Physical Therapy Student Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This qualitative study describes how physical therapist experts in musculoskeletal disorders evaluate and interpret imaging studies and how they employ imaging in clinical decision-making. The informants are physical therapists who are certified orthopedic clinical specialists (OCS) and/or fellows of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapists (AAOMPT). The study employed web conferencing to display patient cases, record screen-capture videos, and to conduct interviews. Informants were observed and their activity video-captured as they evaluated imaging studies and, afterwards, interviews were employed to explore the processes they utilized to evaluate and interpret the images and to discuss imaging-related clinical decision-making, including …

Physical Therapists’ Beliefs About Preparation To Work In Special Care Nurseries And Neonatal Intensive Care Units, Joyce Lammers

Department of Physical Therapy Student Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

BACKGROUND: Physical therapists (PTs) may care for full-term or premature newborns in all levels of hospital nurseries. There is some endorsement in the published physical therapy literature for restricting practice in the nursery setting to only those PTs with specialized training.1-4 PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to understand the experiences of becoming and being a physical therapist in a special care nursery (SCN) or neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) from the therapists’ perspective. METHODS: The participants were physical therapists who have practiced in a SCN or NICU in the United States. A phenomenological approach was used and data …

Small Business Marketing Strategies For Physical Therapy Practice Owners, Matthew Lane Daugherty

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The United States economy depends on small businesses, which represent 99% of all businesses in the United States, yet approximately 50% of small businesses cease operations in the first 5 years. The purpose of this multiple case study was to explore the marketing strategies used by owners of small businesses to develop and maintain their organization through the initial 5 years of business operation. The population included 5 physical therapy business owners in northeastern Florida who had sustained their business for a minimum of 5 years. The conceptual framework for this study was the brand equity model, and data were …