Physical Therapist Residency Programs

Good info here. I had a quick question about residency options.

New student starting a program this summer. I know this is getting ahead of things, but does anyone have any recommendations regarding pursuing a Sports vs. Orthopaedic Residency (or working towards OCS/SCS certification) after graduation? At this point, my mindset is more on working with the high school, college, and recreational athlete population, but it seems as though an orthopaedic residency might be more beneficial for the entire patient population that I'd be seeing.

First question is are you entering a sports PT or an ortho PT residency? One of the goals of APTA credentialed residency programs is to prepare the resident to sit for the respective board certification exam.

I'm actually going to be just beginning the PT program this summer, so this would be looking ahead into the future. From the perspective of a practicing PT, I was curious to hear his/her view of pursuing SCS vs. the OCS (and perhaps entering into a residency for this purpose).

Bos -
Sorry. Now that I'v re-read your post, I can see where you state you're about to start a PT program, not a residency.

In full disclosure, I have my OCS, so have a bit of a bias, I suppose. I did not pursue a residency for several reasons, the most prominenet of which was the relativley small number of residencies that were available when I was considering the OCS exam, and having no residecny that was in my nearby geographical area (the Evidence In Motion Residency, a distance learning program, had not been created yet.).

I think that eventually, Pt will head the way of the MD in the fact that the vast majority of PTs will recieve residency training in a specialty area. For what you say you want, either a sports or an ortho residency will suffice. The primary difference is that the SCS exam has a large component of on-the-field assesment that is not present on the OCS exam.

In my opinion, I'd go with an OCS rather than an SCS simply becuase I wouldn't want to have to log all of the field coverage hours that are required to sit for the SCS - I've got a wife an two kids that I want to spend my evening hours with, rather than provide athletic team coverage for a Friday night football game, for example.

Best of luck to you.

Hey JessPT,

Thanks for your insight on this one. Since I'm just starting out, I don't have much background on the certification requirements, and haven't been able to find much on the APTA's website regarding this particular topic. I had noticed what appears to be a new drive toward residency training (as you mentioned). I know of a few hospitals in my area (Boston) that offer assistance with an orthopaedics residency that's housed locally, though I was very interested in working with the high school/college/recreational athletic population. I was just curious as to the differences in the certifications, and you filled the gaps on this one for me. I don't really have an interest in the on-the-field assessment and overall game coverage, so I would think that the OCS would be where my focus would lie.

Just out of curiousity, do know whether an SCS can assume on-the-field responsibility, or is this something strictly left to an ATC?

The on-the-field assesment might have to do with your individual state practice act. My assumptions is that a PT could legally provide on-the-field assesment in most states, but I'd urge you to look at your state practice act and/or contact your state chapter of the APTA.

Here's the link to residency/felloship info from the APTAs website - you may have already seen it:
http://www.apta.org/AM/Template.cfm...ggedPageDisplay.cfm&TPLID=118&ContentID=15371

Additionally, here's the address for ABPTS certification:

http://www.apta.org/AM/Template.cfm...ggedPageDisplay.cfm&TPLID=206&ContentID=25738

Hope this helps.

Thanks again - I will look into this with my home state as you suggested.

I appreciate the links that you provided, too. I've spent some time on the APTA website, but it seems difficult to get in-depth information regarding each of the certifications, which I guess explains my confusion. I'll spend some more time looking through this information, though, as I think that'll give me a better understanding.

Thanks again!

The above posts are spot-on. Sports is more focused on on-field assessment. While ortho is aimed for the more general orthopedic population. In my opinion, both will get you to where you want to go so I would encourage applying to one or the other when you finish school if you want the experience and extra training.

On the other end, you don't need either to work with the athletic population, although they are very beneficial and will help you stand out as an advanced clinician. You can get plenty of experience with the athletic population during clinicals while in school (so choose your clinicals wisely I have had the fortune to work with weekend warriors, high school, college, and elite/professional athletes during my clinicals.

Currently, I am graduating in a month and am in the process of interviewing at a sports residency program. I had the same question as to whether the ortho or sports would be more beneficial to me. In the end, I felt I needed the on-field assessment so I chose the sports route. I do anticipate sitting for the OCS exam in the future though.

FYI, the sports residency requires you to be an ATC, EMT, or first responder so plan accordingly if you choose this route. I am neither of the first two and completed the first responder certification when I was an undergrad which has long expired. So now I have to take it again....

As you have probably noticed, however, there is a limited number of residencies available which is the downfall, although I assume there are many residencies awaiting credentialing from the APTA. Most of these residencies only accept 1-2 residents a year. Hows that for odds? I inquired the OSU sports residency program and got a response that they had 12 applicants at the time (and are accepting 1). At that same time, they had much less applicants to the ortho program and were thinking of extending the deadline to increase the pool. So it seems that sports residency programs may be harder to get into than ortho (at least at OSU).

I suggest visiting the websites of the residency programs because they give a much better idea of what the curriculums entail vs. the APTA.

---from the Minnesota Sports Medicine residency:

Program graduates will:

• develop the knowledge and skills necessary to administrate a community-focused physical therapy practice that serves high school, collegiate, professional and recreational athletes
• develop the knowledge and skills necessary to provide advanced sports physical therapy care for athletes. This includes study of the pathology and biomechanics of athletic injuries and the physical and psychological manifestations of sports injuries and conditions
• develop professional and interpersonal patient care skills necessary to an outpatient and on-field sports medicine setting
• participate as a member of a sports medicine team that includes primary care sports medicine specialists, orthopedic surgeons and certified athletic trainers
• develop skills to design, implement and complete a community-focused sports medicine research study and publish the result
• enhance their preparation for certification as a specialist in sports physical therapy

---from the University of Indianapolis ortho residency:

Program Goals
1. Prepare residents for expert orthopaedic practice as defined by the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy: Description of Advanced Clinical Practice.
2. Challenge residents to become independent, self-motivated learners through rigorous academic and clinical components of the curriculum.
3. Integrate basic science knowledge with management of patients with orthopedics conditions.
4. Expose residents to a variety of learning experiences surrounding orthopaedic medicine including, but not limited to, radiology, rheumatology, orthopaedic surgery, and family practice

Good luck in school! Oh, and remember, currently you don't need to go through a residency to sit for the specialist exams (although you have to have logged enough practical hours). There are rumors that the APTA may be leaning towards the medical model in the near future. Word is that it may become a reality that you have to go through residency for the OCS...rumor at the moment...

Also...many of the university-based ortho residency programs requires you to teach anatomy/ortho to their students. Great experience, but something to think about...

Hey MinnDasota,

It sounds like you had a similar debate on the ortho vs. sports residencies/board certifications. I'll definitely be sure to plan my clinicals wisely so as to get as much experience as I can with the athletic population (good advice).

I actually spent some time looking through the various websites of the sports residency programs that were listed on the apta's website, and I noticed that there weren't too many out there at this point. As you said, that'll probably increase, and since I'm just starting my program this summer, I can follow that over the next few years.

OSU's program looks top-notch. One open spot makes for some pretty tough odds, though. Just curious, what setting do you see yourself working in down the road? (specifically working with that population or all around ortho with a strong clinical background in sports?)

I kinda suspected that there might be a push for pt's to eventually complete a residency before sitting for board certification, so I'm not surprised to hear you mention that. That said, It seems like the road to becoming a pt is getting tougher and tougher. I just think about someone coming out of high school and doing 4 years UG + 3 years of PT school, and I can't imagine the eventual idea of tacking on a residency unless there's a significant bump in salary. Not that money is everything by any means, but I honestly think that there needs to be some careful consideration before that step is made.

This is a second career for me, so I'm going in on the older side, but definitely looking forward to getting started, nonetheless. Thanks again for the info and good luck to you on your residency applications.

So with the Sports Residency and fellowship programs is there anyway to attain certification as an athletic trainer without a BS in athletic training (mine was in exercise science)? Are there any expedited programs?

SportEhab120 said:

So with the Sports Residency and fellowship programs is there anyway to attain certification as an athletic trainer without a BS in athletic training (mine was in exercise science)? Are there any expedited programs?

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I would like to know this as well although I doubt that there's an accelerated AT programs for PTs.