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Mission
The Physical Therapist Assistant program will provide students with a comprehensive education leading to an associate of applied science degree, including the training, knowledge, skills and professional attitudes necessary to prepare the students to be competent and integral members of a health-care delivery team. The program will be dedicated to providing educational opportunities which will allow the students to reach their maximum potential and excel in their profession.
Goals
Lake Area Technical Institute will:
1. Provide a competency-based curriculum which will prepare students to perform the professional duties of a physical therapist assistant.
2. Ensure that equal educational opportunities are available for all students regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, or marital status.
3. Seek and employ qualified faculty members who possess the experience, leadership skills, and professional attitudes necessary to provide positive role models for the students.
4. Organize and maintain an advisory committee consisting of persons actively engaged in the practice of physical therapy. These persons will serve as liaisons between the PTA program and the physical therapy community, as well as providing support and expert advice to the program.
5. Provide sufficient institutional support in the form of financial resources, supplies, equipment and facilities to provide high-quality educational experiences for the students.
6. Secure a sufficient number of clinical affiliation sites to allow each student to experience a variety of clinical practice settings and patient populations.
7. Ensure that the students understand the role and scope of the physical therapist assistant within the physical therapy profession and the health-care delivery system.
8. Ensure that the program emphasizes the importance of ethical considerations in the practice of physical therapy and makes the students cognizant of the value of professional organizations, as well as the need for continuing education.
9. Determine the effectiveness of the program through periodic evaluation by administrative staff, program faculty, members of the advisory committee, clinical faculty, and students. As necessary, the curriculum will be revised to ensure that the students are aware of current theory and practice in the profession.
10. Ensure that students achieve satisfactory proficiency/competency in treatment procedures before they are placed in clinical affiliation sites.
11. Provide an educational format, in terms of both curriculum and instruction, which will reflect the needs of the students, the physical therapy profession and the communities served.
12. Provide a sufficiently detailed outline of the program structure as well as the methods and means of communication so that all parties-the institute, the program faculty, the clinical facilities, and the students-are aware of roles, expectations and objective involved.
Student Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of the Physical Therapist Assistant Program, the graduate will demonstrate knowledge of:
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the rationale and effectiveness of physical therapy treatment procedures |
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the Standards of Practice for Physical Therapy, the Standards for Ethical Conduct for the Physical Therapist Assistant, and the Guide for Conduct of the Affiliate Member |
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applicable state and federal laws |
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ethical principles |
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the scope of their abilities in the delivery of care |
The graduate will demonstrate safe and competent application of:
1. activities of daily living and functional training
2. assistive/adaptive devices
3. balance and gait training
4. biofeedback
5. developmental activities
6. electric current
7. electromagnetic radiations
8. external compression
9. hydrotherapy
10. orthoses and prostheses
11. patient/family education
12. postural training and body mechanics
13. pulmonary hygiene techniques
14. therapeutic exercise
15. therapeutic massage
16. thermal agents
17. topical application (including those for Iontophoresis)
18. traction
19. ultrasound
20. universal precautions/ infection control
21. wound care.
22. assessment techniques to include:
a. architectural barriers and environmental modifications
b. endurance
c. flexibility/joint range of motion and muscle length
d. functional activities
e. gait and balance
f. pain
g. posture
h. righting and equilibrium reactions
i. segmental length, girth and volume
j. skin and sensation
k. strength
l. vital signs
The student will:
1. communicate on a timely basis with the supervising physical therapists about the patient's status.
2. interact with patients and families in a manner which provides the desired psychosocial support including the recognition of cultural and socioeconomic differences.
3. participate in the teaching of other health care providers, patients and families.
4. document relevant aspects of patient treatment.
5. participate in discharge planning and follow up care.
6. demonstrate effective written, oral, and nonverbal communication with patients and their families, colleagues, health care providers, and the public.
7. demonstrate an understanding of levels of authority and responsibility; planning, time management, supervisory process, performance evaluations, policies and procedures; fiscal considerations for physical therapy providers and consumers; and, continuous quality improvement
8. participate in professional development by reading and interpreting professional literature and participating in continued education opportunities.
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