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CHP grad is ready to serve by Heather Woolwine Public Relations Julia Norton has that look about her. She’s someone you’d easily ask for directions or advice. What you see is what you get: a gracious, organized graduate of the physical therapy program through MUSC’s College of Health Professions (CHP) ready to implement the second half of the school’s motto, “Enter to Learn, Leave to Serve.”   Norton began her journey through the physical therapy program before she even graduated from Clemson University. “I was accepted into an accelerated program that allowed you, if you met all the prerequisites, to enter MUSC during your senior year at Clemson and basically participate in two for one [years] credits,” she said. “By the time I graduated from Clemson in 2004, I had already entered the three-year PT program and completed my first year.” (This program is no longer available.)   Fiancé, Marcus Anderson, a third-year student in the College of Medicine, helps physical therapist Julia Norton with her graduation gown.   Throughout her track, Norton participated in a work- study program as a graduate assistant for CHP’s student services and the dean’s office. She also found time to volunteer in the community and received the Most Outstanding Student Volunteer (2005-06) from CHP. “You shouldn’t be afraid to get involved in a number of different activities while you’re in school,” she advised. “I was a co-officer most of the time when I held leadership positions, and that enabled me to share the responsibility with someone else which was great for my schedule. Having a work study on campus made it much easier to bring in extra money while still having time for other things. It really comes down to being organized and knowing how to prioritize everything that you need to do.”   Norton mentioned a fondness for the MUSC Student Government Association (SGA) and the opportunities to meet other students from different colleges that she might not have had if it weren’t for becoming involved. The MUSC Student Programs office was also instrumental in her development as a masters-level professional by providing cultural events, intramural sports and volunteer opportunities. Norton participated in Habitat for Humanity, food drives, events for the National Cancer Society, the Ronald McDonald House, the Charleston Miracle League and other activities. “The Charleston Miracle League was really cool because it’s this baseball team for children with disabilities. They have a buddy that helps them run the bases and it’s just a lot of fun,” she said. This year, most of her volunteer hours came from serving as co-race director for the ALS race this year benefiting Lou Gehrig’s disease.   Both volunteering and her work study enabled her to interact with all types of people, including administrative professionals at MUSC and prospective students. Frequently, Norton gave campus tours to individuals considering MUSC as their place of study. Why physical therapy? Norton is the first person in her family to pursue a master’s degree and the first to forge into health care. “I guess it was seeing what my grandparents had gone through with their own physical and occupational therapies that opened my eyes to the field at first,” she said. “But then an occupational therapist that had graduated from MUSC came to my high school in Rock Hill during my freshman year and spoke to us about her profession and how much she loved it. We were in a small Christian school with limited resources and people to talk to us, but after listening to her, I was pretty sure that something along those lines was what I wanted to do.”   School counselors and advisors would nurture that natural interest by telling her that the physical therapy field was growing rapidly, and that with a large aging population, opportunities would abound once she graduated. During her training, Norton discovered a love of working with adults suffering from neuromuscular disorders. “It’s really amazing because patients never present their symptoms in the same way, so there’s always some challenge,” she said. “You have to be creative and find new ways to manage their symptoms and often you see these patients for a long time so you really get to develop a relationship with them because you see them regularly. I like being a part of teaching them to become more independent despite their impairments or for many the most important thing is learning to walk again. Even if they don’t like you in the beginning, they like you in the end.”   Norton added that she gained satisfaction from helping people get up and around again and identified the faculty within the physical therapy program as wonderful role models. “They’re all teaching, doing clinical work and research plus many of them have families to think about. They truly inspired me to do well and showed me that it can all be done.” Physical therapy provides those who become its practitioners with schedule flexibility to have more time for family, according to Norton.   In terms of her future, she currently is seeking a job and is applying to MUSC’s program. There’s also a wedding to think about. Her fiancé, Marcus Anderson, is a third-year medical student in the College of Medicine hoping to specialize in psychiatry. The two will marry in mid-October and hope to stay in Charleston for some time. “We really enjoy the Southeast and being near the beach,” Norton said. She also mentioned the advantages to having a relationship with someone who’s also in health care. “It’s nice in a way because we can always appreciate how busy the other one is, talk about health stuff and situations and he was actually a great help giving me some advice on a patient with schizophrenia that I was treating for cervical stenosis during my rotation at the VA in Augusta, Ga. This patient was very paranoid and refused to work with me at first, but once we were able to make him realize that I wasn’t going to hurt him, things went really well. He’d tell me funny stories and we’d work on walking over to the little hospital shop. On my last day, he wanted to buy me a Coke. It was challenging, but a really great experience.”   Norton is a rare find, according to  Ruth Fortini, CHP Student Services Center.   “Children’s advocate, Sister Mary Rose McGeady said, ‘There is neither greater joy nor greater reward than to make a fundamental difference in someone’s life.’ Julia Norton is one of those rare human beings who have honestly made a positive difference in so many peoples’ lives and I have no doubt will continue to do so. It has truly been an honor to have gotten to know her,” she said.   Excited about graduating and maybe a little scared about job-hunting, Norton spoke about her feelings of MUSC as a whole. “MUSC provided me with a really awesome experience. Clemson was so big and I wasn’t comfortable getting involved during the time I was there. There’s always so much going on at MUSC and it was fun to get involved here. There’s a sense of belonging because everyone is juggling multiple things at once and that helps you identify with each other. When I came here, I thought of myself as a PT student. Now, I have a bigger perspective: I see myself as an MUSC student.” I couldn’t have made it without: 1.    Marcus, my friends and family 2.    Ruth Fortini (The CHP “mom”) 3.    Free food at meetings (especially when you forget your lunch) 4.    Student programs activities 5.    My calendar Friday, May 19, 2006 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 catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Island Publication at 849-1778, ext. 201.