Jamie Crouse Midwest Physical Therapy & Sports Center 2801 Pine Lake Road, Suite K Lincoln, NE 68516 Kim Knopik
Crouse 1 Renee Tewes is the owner of Midwest Physical Therapy and Sports Center. Renee is a graduate of the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha and has been in the field since 1988. Midwest Physical Therapy and Sports Center opened in 1996 and has grown into four different locations. Their team focuses on building personal relationships with their patients and working with physicians to provide treatment. The team offers pre- and post-surgical therapy, general orthopedics, sports rehabilitation, aquatic physical therapy, lymphedema therapy, hand splinting, custom orthotics, graston technique, active release techniques, and massage therapy. The Graston Technique is provided by Kim Knopik. This technique uses stainless steel instruments to go over over the fibrotic tissue to break down scar tissue and reduces the inflammation that causes pain and restricted movement. This technique is proven to achieve faster and better outcomes in treating: Achilles tendinitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, neck pain, fibromyalgia, tennis elbow, back pain, and shin splints. It has had positive outcomes in 75-90 percent of all the conditions treated. Hand splinting is offered at the main location. Adam Mailander, is an occupational therapist and a Certified Hand Therapist that offers custom made hand splints for fractures, crush injuries, tendon injuries, ligamentous injuries, nerve compression, severe soft tissue injury, contractures, and post-operative protection. I observed him custom make a splint from thermoplastic materials that formed directly to the patient. These splints are made to immobilize and provide better support for the patient. Physical therapist and lymphedema specialist, Dawn Bonness, offers lymphedema management and treatment at the main location. Lymphedema is an accumulation of lymphatic fluid that causes swelling. Lymphedema is associated with complications after cancer treatments. While observing this treatment I was able to witness a more complicated case. The
Crouse 2 patient entered the room in a wheel chair and was very fragile. She had been battling cancer for quite some time and lymphedema therapy was the only treatment to reduce the swelling. This form of therapy amazed me because it is simply a gentle massage that moves fluid that accumulated in certain body parts to other parts throughout the body. Midwest Physical Therapy and Sports Center offers three different locations throughout Lincoln, Nebraska and one location in Ashland, Nebraska. Offering four different locations throughout Lincoln is convenient for all of their patients and employees. Midwest Physical Therapy and Sports Center is connected to Lincoln Orthopedic Clinic. This gives physical therapists and patients the opportunity to have close contact with surgeons. They employ 13 therapists throughout their four locations. They employ nine physical therapists, three physical therapists assistants, an occupational therapist, and a number of technicians. Throughout my internship at Midwest Physical Therapy and Sports Center, I took on projects that consisted of creating two brochures for the company, creating a patient satisfaction survey and embedding it onto their website, updating exercise handouts, creating a running injury prevention PowerPoint, delivering co-pays to the main location, laundry, and cleaning. These projects challenged me to be creative and to use critical thinking. I was required to be creative while designing the brochures and updating exercise handouts. I gained access to be an admin for their webpage and had to use critical thinking in order to figure out how to control a new webpage and I taught myself how to embed the survey to Midwest Physical Therapy and Sports Center s webpage. The majority of my time was spent observing the physical therapist and patient interaction. I observed many evaluations and progress measurements. I stood by and retrieved certain equipment when the therapist needed assistance. For example, I would grab the ultrasound unit and Graston tools for the physical therapist while the therapist would be
Crouse 3 evaluating and communicating with the patient. I would also, assist patients while they were performing their strengthening exercises by holding the thera-band and retrieving a different free weight for them as they progressed to the next level. I helped the therapist while stretching patients when my assistance was needed as well. Due to Midwest Physical Therapy and Sports Center s policy, I was only allowed to observe the physical therapists and was not able to have hands on experience. Throughout the course of interacting with the staff and patients I observed the physical therapists perform evaluations and was able to see them diagnose patients. I observed many techniques that consisted of Graston, massage, traction, electrotherapy, and ultrasound. I observed the therapist and technicians incorporate many range of motion and strengthening exercises into the patients treatment program. I not only had the privilege to observe the different techniques and exercises but I was also able to witness the therapist and patient relationship. I believe that the relationship between the therapist and patient is the key to progression throughout their treatment and that listening and being compassionate is crucial to their treatment success. The patients make the career enjoyable, whether they are the geriatric patients who share their wisdom or young athletes that display determination. The patient not only learns and benefits from the therapist but the therapist learns from the patient. A patient shared with me that physical therapy is a great profession to pursue but in order to be successful, one must have an inner self that wants to provide the best care and wants to find a way that truly helps a patient long term. I could not agree more. The work environment was relaxed but full of activity. I had a desk to work at while I created my projects on the computer. The gym was well organized and clean. The gym consisted of four high tables and two low mats, treadmill, stationary bike, Nu-step, exercise
Crouse 4 balls, free weights, thera-bands, ultrasound unit, electrotherapy unit, graston tools, and three examination rooms. My training method took place on the first day of my internship. First, we took a tour of the facility and met the other staff members. We went over projects that I was interested in completing and decided to start with updating the Facebook webpage, website, and creating a brochure for the business. Throughout the internship I was open to ideas that any of the staff presented to me. Kim explained to me what the electrotherapy, ultrasound, traction, hot and cold therapy, and Graston technique were and what they were used for. Throughout the course of the internship, I observed physical therapists and technicians and completed the assigned projects. The training objectives were to be trained specific duties and complete any projects and these were met throughout the internship. There were a couple minor problems that I encountered during my internship. Once I completed the patient satisfaction survey, the staff found a spelling error. After being informed I got online a made the change on surverymonkey.com and then uploaded the corrected survey to the webpage. This mistake was an easy fix but embarrassing as well. I took responsibility for my action and solved the problem within minutes. I came to work fairly early because I didn t know what time the first patient was scheduled. I had an hour to kill so I continued to work on projects, cleaned the gym, and did laundry. The major accomplishments that I had included: creating and printing over 250 copies of the two brochures, gaining access to become an admin for their webpage, creating a survey, embedding the survey onto their webpage, and developing lasting friendships with the staff. These accomplishments made my internship exciting and kept me busy. It was a great
Crouse 5 experience to be able to create brochures for their business because I was also learning more about what they offered their patients, their goal, and a few facts about their business. Midwest Physical Therapy and Sports Center is a good clinic to do a physical therapy internship with. The staff is friendly and they create an exciting environment to work in. The on-site supervisor, Kim Knopik, is a great teacher. She always tried to enhance my knowledge about the profession and made me think critically and effectively. The staff helped me apply knowledge throughout the day while observing. They explained what they were doing as I was observing and were open to any questions that I had. It was a great experience to see the staff take pride in their therapist- patient relationships. My classroom training at Concordia University prepared me for this position as an intern. The classes that were the most helpful to me on the job included: Exercise Physiology, Anatomy and Physiology, Care and Prevention for Athletic Injuries, Legal Aspects of Sport and Exercise, and Exercise Prescription. I utilized the knowledge from these courses and applied them to what I was observing. Concordia University prepared to act ethically and with integrity in and outside of the classroom. The professors have made it a priority to have the students apply their knowledge throughout the course. My internship experience was great. It allowed me to utilize my major in Exercise Science by applying the knowledge I have gained in a work setting. This clinic and staff have given me advice for the application process and for my future career. They gave great advice for the application and interview process and are available for any further questions later on. I developed great relationships with two of the physical therapists and they both gave great letters of recommendation for me for professional school. This clinic was very welcoming and comfortable. In my opinion, it was a great place to learn from some of the best teachers.