Program Goals & Objectives

Sports Physical Therapy Residency Program – Goals & Objectives

1. To enhance the resident’s ability to apply best available evidence in physical therapy to the care of patients.

a. Program participation allows access to a variety of research databases to find the highest level of available research for a given topic.
b. The program will offer evidence from both the foundational and clinical sciences to the practice of physical therapy.
c. The program will require the resident to accurately summarize and cite several articles as the basis of clinical practice.

2. Provide advanced knowledge in physical therapy foundational and clinical sciences.

a. The program will require the resident to apply evidence from the foundational sciences to the practice of physical therapy.
b. Facilitate and evaluate the use of tests and measures with high diagnostic value.
c. Provide education and mentoring to allow the resident to recognize a pattern of signs and symptoms in order to make an accurate diagnosis.
d. Incorporate the utilization of efficient and /or effective interventions.

3. Educate and evaluate the advanced skills in examination and treatment during the care of patients.

a. Evaluate a thorough patient/client history to include information regarding the patient’s physical and psychosocial condition.
b. Evaluate a thorough systems review.
c. Assess the appropriateness to relate findings of the history and examination to the pathophysiology of musculoskeletal conditions.
d. Evaluate the use of objective tests for patient examination and re-examination that measure improvement.
e. Evaluate the resident’s plan of care that includes prediction of the patient’s optimal level of improvement in function.
f. Evaluate the utilization and implementation of appropriate treatment interventions, including referral to another health care provider.
g. Evaluate the resident ability to progress or modify treatment as indicated by patient response.

4. Assess and evaluate exceptional professional behaviors with clients, patients and families while functioning in an inter-professional setting.

a. Ensure that the resident will consistently exhibit post entry-level abilities.

5. Provide the resident an opportunity to demonstrate high level teaching abilities in the didactic and clinical settings.

a. Assess presentation feedback / evaluations to ensure favorable ratings from peers, mentors and community members regarding community based and conference presentations.  

6. Assess the achievement of exceptional clinical outcomes.

a. The program will evaluate the resident’s compilation of patients categorized by diagnosis early in the treatment process.
b. Evaluate the resident’s patient outcomes (via region-specific patient reported outcomes) treated by the resident to ensure, on average, clinically important change in function (pre to post scores).
c. Assess resident’s patient outcomes (via region-specific patient reported outcomes) quarterly in order to ensure improvements in care quality across quarters.

7. Provide the resident with critical inquiry initiatives to allow appraisal, application, assessment of research design and dissemination.

a. The program will provide the Resident opportunities to participate in a case study or ongoing research studies. The resident will be required to submit an abstract for presentation at the state conference and at a national PT conference.