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CHP deepens PT curriculum, degree offerings by Michael Baker Public Relations The College of Health Professions will take its physical therapy program to a new level beginning in May 2005. On Oct. 7, the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education allowed MUSC to offer a doctoral program in physical therapy, in place of the existing master’s program. Dr. David Morrisette instructs students in the physical therapist program using a hands-on demonstration. The College of Health Professions now offers a doctoral degree in the program, expanding upon its former master’s degree curriculum. Dave Morrisette, Ph.D., associate professor, and program director Kathleen Cegles, D.Ed., said the move to a more extensive curriculum leads MUSC into a modern era of physical therapist education. “Recently, the profession has seen a movement toward increased education,” Morrisette said. “In the past two years, 50 percent of the programs in the nation have moved their curricula from master’s to doctoral.” A few years ago, the accrediting body of the American Physical Therapy Association adopted an intangible mission statement known as Vision 2020. The vision asserted that at this point, every physical therapist educational program in the nation should offer students the opportunity to attain a doctoral degree. “Currently, 107 out of 204 programs offer a doctoral degree in physical therapy,” Cegles said, “and quite a few more have solid plans in place.” She and Morrisette asserted that upping the ante from master’s to doctoral isn’t a superficial act. The new program at MUSC provides a marked addition to the existing educational offering. “There’s quite a change in the curriculum,” Morrisette said. “Previously the college adhered to a three-plus-three model, in which students needed three years of undergraduate study and three years of education at MUSC before earning their master’s degrees. The curriculum also mandated 120 credit hours.” Now, students must complete their undergraduate degrees—generally four years of education—before enrolling in MUSC’s three-year, year-round program. The number of required credit hours also jumped from 120 to 145.  Although the new requirements may appear daunting, Morrisette assured that the increased workload provides improved education and more practical teachings. “We’re increasing the depth and breadth of education in physical therapy,” he said. “The program offers more insight into basic and clinical sciences and delves deeper into the ethics of our profession. We’re not introducing totally new material; instead, we’re able to go further into existing issues.” At its core, the program stresses autonomous practice. Because they don’t always have physicians at hand to help with diagnoses, physical therapists must identify conditions within their scope of expertise as well as conditions that should be referred to a doctor. “When they enter clinical practice, our students need to be able to make decisions on their own, so a huge part of our curriculum addresses differential diagnosis—knowing which conditions can or can’t be handled through physical therapy,” Morrisette said. Cegles elaborated, noting that physical therapy can’t treat every condition. “For example, a physical therapist may need to determine if a patient’s lower back pain derives from a bout of weekend-warrior exercise or from something outside the therapist’s expertise, like a tumor,” she explained. Although both physical therapist educators agreed that the program won’t teach students to diagnose specific illnesses, graduates will learn when to refer a patient to a physician for further diagnosis. Thus, “autonomous” doesn’t equate to “defiantly independent.” “We’re not preparing our students to be physicians,” they said. “We’re training them to work in conjunction with other health care providers.” The program also focuses on education, teaching its students to share their knowledge with patients. In addition to well-publicized work in rehabilitation, physical therapists also play a role in preventative medicine. “The big thing physical therapists do is explain and teach,” Morrisette said. “Among other things, we can teach patients about exercise programs and proper body mechanics that can optimize workplace performance.” “Education is really important in physical therapy,” Cegles agreed. “I’ve often joked to Dave that, from a public health standpoint, it’d be nice if we were put out of business because everyone knew how to take care of themselves.” Joking aside, there won’t be many physical therapists in the unemployment line any time soon, especially in the Southeast. Many studies have shown that in states like South Carolina, where the impact of diseases like diabetes and cancer remains high, lifestyles greatly affect quality of life and severity of disease. Furthermore, a large number of intervention methods involve not medicine, but physical activities. The revelation highlights the importance of physical therapy’s role within public health. “Our profession plays a major role in the national health plan, and we need to prepare our graduates to respond to the increased responsibility,” Morrisette said. Such preparation requires constant attention to current events, as medicine evolves at an ever-increasing rate. “You used to see medical breakthroughs once every 5 to 10 years,” Cegles said. “Then it became every three to five years, and now you’ll see serious advancements almost yearly.” Keeping the curriculum fresh is of utmost importance, but the program’s new academic standards aid the process. “A lot of the areas that were part of the foundation of the master’s program are now prerequisites, so we don’t have to spend as much time on the basics,” Morrisette explained. “Our students enter the classroom with a knowledge base from their undergraduate education that is on par with what would have been considered graduate level 20 years ago, and we’re taking advantage of that.” Continuously evolving course material paves the way for the true test of knowledge: the physical therapy licensing exam. According to Cegles, the exam is based on an analysis of practicing therapists and the issues that affect them. “The exam designers talk to physical therapists to figure out what our students need to know, what’s going on right now in physical therapy,” she said. And while a new doctoral program seems excellent for entering students, those who already completed the master’s program needn’t worry about being left out of the progressive loop.  The college also developed a transitional program for master’s recipients who want to achieve their doctorate degrees. The transitional program will focus on MUSC graduates from the past six or seven years, bringing them up to speed within the profession. Both new programs should represent a welcome option for local students interested in careers in physical therapy. They certainly provide MUSC with an opportunity to create what Morrisette called “parity of degrees.” “Over the past few years, we’ve lost a lot of top candidates to other universities because we couldn’t offer the level of education the students desired. Now, we can be competitive with other institutions,” he said. “We’re trying to develop a more well-rounded graduate. That’s our goal, and we think we can do it.” Friday, Oct. 28, 2004 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to petersnd@musc.edu or catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Community Press at 849-1778.