Dear PT Students,

Run toward something, not away from something.

PT school can get old.  You’re not making money, you can’t take vacations like your friends, and the work does not end.  It is only natural to WANT it to end.

I don’t know any PT student that wanted to stay a student forever.  Many are counting down the practicals, the exams, and the days until they finally sign DPT after their name.

But, focusing on PT school ending makes you miss some really great opportunities while you are there.  Rather than trying to get away from PT school, start looking toward life as a PT.  Don’t try to run away from PT school, think of it as moving toward PT status.

I know it is only a slight difference.  Yet, looking forward to starting life as a PT is more likely to get you to volunteer at the school clinic to get more reps, can result in studying MSK for your future patient and not just for a grade, or may...

“It’s been pretty good,” she said, sounding optimistic.

Her answer threw me off.  She was the third PT I had asked that day about how things were going since COVID started.  She was the first one with a positive response.  She had a lot of great things to say about how her employer was handling the situation.  She described that they were in it together, that they were figuring out telehealth, and that they were all offering ways to stay engaged with patients.  Her pay hadn’t changed although her caseload had decreased substantially.

Her feeling of camaraderie was a polar opposite to others I had spoken to who felt isolated and overlooked by their employer.  We are fortunate to be able to coach a variety of physical therapists around the world and we have gotten to hear how people have fared through COVID-19. It has been interesting to hear the extremes of how employers have treated employees during this time and how PTs have...