Scholarship Spotlight: 2023 Winners
Tamara, PT Student
Claire, OT Student
“This fall semester, I had the opportunity to complete my adult rehabilitation level one fieldwork at University Hospital in Newark in acute inpatient. I absolutely loved my time at University Hospital. I learned so much and had many opportunities to work with patients with a variety of clinical diagnoses. I am looking forward to my pediatric and psychosocial placements coming up this spring, at A. Harry Moore School and Covenant House Dove Learning Center. My education and fieldwork experiences so far have broadened my interests for my future career. Thank you to the David Reichman PT and OT Scholarship Committee at the Epstein Memorial Fund for awarding me with this scholarship.”
Ashley, OT Student
“I had the opportunity to work in Rutgers University’s adult pro bono TBI clinic with guidance from my clinical instructor Dr. Natalia Noce. Under her supervision, I was able to independently create treatment plans and assist in the evaluation intake process for clients who experienced traumatic brain injury, while ensuring the client’s motivational goals remain the focus of the therapy interventions. I have also worked in a community-based setting with the geriatric population at a senior day center, providing group interventions for clients with type 2 diabetes, low vision, and limited mobility from joint pain providing gardening activities, painting projects, and yoga and mindfulness practices. This past fall semester, I was able to work in a daycare center specifically with infants 0-12 months of age increasing mobility through playtime activities and teaching the children strategies for gross motor movement in crawling and standing. This spring I will be placed at my first Fieldwork 2 experience in the New York City Department of Education as a school-based OT/S working between two locations in Manhattan.
My first experience in the Rutgers Pro Bono TBI clinic was with a young adult in her early 20s. She faced an Arteriovenous Malformation rupture a few years before her first visit to see an Occupational Therapist at our clinic. I first took the time to observe an evaluation, sat in on a couple of sessions with the speech-language pathologist, and documented my thoughts on what could be meaningful to her in our first treatment session. She indicated that she would like to get back to typing and found it to be extremely difficult with her ataxia from the accident. She also indicated that she wanted to be independent in putting her makeup on all by herself, so I decided to create the intervention around her most meaningful goals. I pulled out an accessible keyboard in our first session, knowing that it may be challenging for her to type anything at all. After a few attempts on the keyboard, both she and I were moved to tears when she finally spelled out her name. She was my very first client and I will never forget the overwhelming joy I felt when she became aware of the strength that she had and the hope that she gained from that first session.
Claire, OT Student
“This fall semester, I had the opportunity to complete my adult rehabilitation level one fieldwork at University Hospital in Newark in acute inpatient. I absolutely loved my time at University Hospital. I learned so much and had many opportunities to work with patients with a variety of clinical diagnoses. I am looking forward to my pediatric and psychosocial placements coming up this spring, at A. Harry Moore School and Covenant House Dove Learning Center. My education and fieldwork experiences so far have broadened my interests for my future career. Thank you to the David Reichman PT and OT Scholarship Committee at the Epstein Memorial Fund for awarding me with this scholarship.”
Samantha, PT Student
“I completed my rotation at PG Chambers, a school for children with special needs. I thoroughly enjoyed my time at this pediatrics affiliation. I have received so many incredible opportunities this fall such as observing multiple in-house orthotic and equipment clinics, performing and writing evaluations, working in public schools, IEP meetings, early intervention, practicing writing letters of medical necessity, and a wide variety of rare diagnoses and different ages.
I had the opportunity to observe a student that recently graduated high school return with his mother to trial some new cutting edge equipment. He utilizes a power wheelchair with a head array as his primary form of mobility and standing. The day I met him, he was trialing a pair of smart glasses, instead of a head array, to drive a power chair and a new technology system called LUCI. The LUCI has 365 sensors surrounding the chair that automatically stops it when it approaches curbs, walls, people, or other objects. With the addition of these two smart technology systems, the student was able to sit in his power chair and drive a completely different power chair from across the room.
Seeing how focused he was while trying this equipment was incredible to witness. The other aspect that made this moment stand out to me was seeing how strongly his mother advocated for him to get this equipment. When a child receives a diagnosis like CP, it significantly impacts not only the patient but also the caregivers. To see how involved this mother was and how she knew her son was capable of learning to use this technology and the positive impacts it would have for their family was such a testament to the education his previous physical therapists provided to him. It was a beautiful example of patient/caregiver education and collaborative care. It was so amazing to be a part of the moment this boy realized that after some practice using these new systems, he would be able to access his wheelchair from his bed and ultimately navigate his household environment safely. In the future I hope to educate my patients and their families the way that this student’s previous PTs educated them. I plan to utilize resources available to me to help students increase their functional independence and access their environment safely.
My next clinical affiliation is in outpatient ortho/sports med at JAG Physical Therapy in Cedar Knolls. I am attending the Combine Sections Meeting in Boston and presenting a poster with my research group under Dr. Adrienne Simonds exploring single limb stance in postpartum and pregnant women with pelvic girdle pain.”