PhD Student
Beth Brown is one of the first three students in the
pioneering PhD in applied physiology program of the Georgia
Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), Atlanta. The new doctoral
program relates to the O&P profession. What brought this bright
young student to the program?
She answers: “I have been practicing as a physical
therapist for the past ten years in Florida and absolutely love
being a clinician. However, I have always wanted to be in academia,
specifically teaching and conducting research in a university’s
physical therapy program, but I didn’t want to pursue this until I
had some good clinical experience to bring to the classroom and
lab.
“I moved to Atlanta in January of last year to be with the man I
married a few months later. While I was working at an outpatient
physical therapy clinic, a patient who worked in the College of
Sciences at Georgia Tech told me about the new AP PhD program
during one of his therapy sessions. Both the timing of the
opportunity and the scope of the program fit too perfectly with my
professional goals to pass up. I started in August, and while it
has been quite an adjustment to be a student again, I love the
challenge and have no regrets.”
Beth’s research project connects with the prosthetic profession,
since it focuses on the systemic function of amputees as it relates
to exercise dynamics and metabolics. Interestingly, famed amputee
triathlete Sarah Reinertsen was her inspiration. Says Beth, “I am
an avid triathlete and first became interested in amputee athlete
physiology after watching Sarah Reinertsen become the first amputee
female to complete the Escape from Alcatraz triathlon a couple of
years ago, a race I considered to be the second most challenging
course I’ve ever done. I then got to watch her successfully finish
the most challenging course I’ve ever done, the Hawaii Ironman
Triathlon in Kona this year, and, like everyone else there, was
just blown away by her accomplishment.
“But beyond that,” Beth continues, “it left me curious how the
physiological demands of her performance differ from that of
non-amputees. Do we really know? After an extensive review of the
literature, I was surprised to find out that no, we really don’t.
There is a wealth of information about non-amputee endurance
athlete physiology that coaches and athletes use in training and
racing to maximize results. However, is it accurate to assess
fitness and prescribe exercise for amputees using the predictive
formulas and testing protocols that have been established in
non-amputee athlete physiology research? For instance, how does the
loss of muscle mass from amputation affect the accuracy of using
‘target heart rate zones’ to describe exercise intensity levels for
amputees?”
Brown is currently writing a grant proposal for funding to allow
her to compare oxygen consumption, blood lactate accumulation,
heart rate, energy metabolism, and other physiological responses of
amputee and non-amputee runners during maximal graded exercise
treadmill testing in the lab.
Brown sees value for clinicians trained in research, as well as
persons aiming strictly for the research arena. She comments,
“There is a huge need for clinicians trained in research in many
health-related professions, including physical therapy and P&O.
Clinicians bring perspective gained from experience with real
patient problems and contribute a sense of applicability to
research questions. I think what Georgia Tech has done by
establishing the first entry-level masters degree program in
P&O brings P&O education where it needs to be. Given the
rapid advancements in materials science and prosthetic technology,
the field will demand clinicians with expertise commensurate with
an advanced degree. Moving the P&O education toward producing
clinicians trained in utilizing and performing research will
ultimately serve to increase the body of knowledge for the
profession and better meet the patients’ needs.”
Georgia Tech MSPO Graduate
Andrew Sawers, a graduate of Georgia Tech’s Master
of Science in Prosthetics and Orthotics (MSPO) program and the
author of this month’s “Perspective” guest editorial on page 60, is
now completing his residency at the University of Rochester Medical
Center, Rochester, New York.
Andrew likewise wants to retain the connectivity
between research and clinical practice. Looking five years into the
future, Andrew says, “I see myself in an institutional setting
continuing with clinical practice while I pursue a PhD in a
prosthetic-related field–biomedical, biomechanics or
rehabilitation sciences etc.–to provide myself with the
appropriate tools to act as a PI [principal investigator] in
prosthetic and orthotic research. Ultimately I would like to hold
an academic position where I can conduct thorough and meaningful
research, while also maintaining a clinical affiliation with a
gradual transition to a focus on research.”
Research Assistant Professor, Northwestern
Margrit Meier, CPO, PhD, is a research assistant
professor at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of
Medicine Prosthetics Research Laboratory and Rehabilitation
Engineering Research Program, Chicago, Illinois. She sees the
O&P profession as being “in a transformation period where it is
trying to establish a stronger, i.e. equal, position within the
rehabilitation team. I support this
transformation.”
 |
| Two primary advanced, research-oriented educational pathways are envisioned that are or should be available to prosthetists and orthotists (Figure 1). The report points out, |
She adds, “But I am not quite sure if the only way
to achieve this goal is towards a PhD program.”
She continues, “Let me define first what I understand with a PhD
education: A PhD is an academic degree with a strong research
orientation, thus not necessarily clinical-oriented. In my opinion,
such a degree may not automatically provide the tools that an
O&P professional requires in order to set his or her services
apart from non-O&P professionals. What is required in my
opinion is a strong skill and knowledge-based formation that
provides the O&P professional with the necessary tools that
will allow him or her to participate successfully in the
rehabilitation market. A successful competitor will have an equal
position in the rehabilitation team.”
Meier received her certification in Switzerland after completing
a four-year program. “At that time, most higher education in our
profession was directed towards Germany because no further
education in O&P was available in Switzerland,” she explains.
“The MSc-Program offered by the University of Strathclyde in
Glasgow, Scotland, was an alternative that suited my needs best.”
After completing the program, Meier continued her academic
education and completed it with a PhD degree in clinical sciences
with an emphasis in biomechanics.
Meier pursued further education because “I wanted to understand
the biomechanical aspects of our profession better and was thus on
a search for answers to my questions. I like variety and thus
continue to explore and expand into different domains.”
When asked what she considers as the value of advanced degrees
in the O&P profession, both clinically and in research, she
responded, “In my opinion, this depends on the passion of a person
towards a profession and its professional goals. A higher degree
does not automatically mean that his or her contribution to the
profession is of higher value and thus relevant to the advancement
of the profession. I truly believe that valued contributions are
achieved by persons that love their job, enjoy it, and are
passionate about it, independent of the education degree.”
