30 Physical Therapists Achieve Specialist Board Certifications
Confluent Health Celebrates Most Board-Certified Specialists of any US Company
This week, 30 physical therapists from the Confluent Health family of private practices have added three additional letters to their long list of decorated qualifications. Achieving a board certification places these dedicated therapists at the top of their field in physical therapy.
Board certifications are granted by the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), requiring a minimum of 2,000 hours of clinical practice, a rigorous application and examination process. Over 40% of Confluent Health’s physical therapists are board-certified, though only 11% of the physical therapists in the United States are board certified in a specialty. Of those, 7% of therapists in the United States are Orthopedic Clinical Specialists and fewer than 1% are Sports Clinical Specialists.
The advanced clinical knowledge and skill set in a special area of practice that comes with a board certification allows therapists to better treat the patients in their specialty and keeps them up to date with cutting edge research and technology. Studies have shown that board-certified physical therapists provide outcomes more quickly for patients in their specialty area.
“Every Physical Therapist that is welcomed into our organization agrees that they will become a board-certified specialist during their time within the Confluent Health family,” said Confluent Health CEO Larry Benz, PT, DPT, OCS, MBA, MAPP, “This agreement is a bilateral commitment, however, as it takes significant effort and grit by each therapist to not only complete the rigorous training, but to also prepare for this distinction. We are proud to have 4 times the national average of board-certified specialists and to offer our patients leading-edge therapy from the most highly trained therapists across the nation.”
Because the OCS certification denotes the therapist is an orthopedic clinical specialist, with an exceptional level of training and expertise, they are highly qualified through evidence-based practice, orthopedic injury examination, treatment, and medical interventions. The SCS certification concentrates on acute and critical sports injury treatment and sports injury prevention and wellness. Both certifications require training beyond the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degrees that these individuals have achieved.
Benz further offered his congratulations to all newly board-certified therapists, “We are very proud of the commitment that these Physical Therapists have made to becoming board-certified specialists, and the hard work they put in to flourish in their careers. It’s a true testament to their passion for the field of Physical Therapy and to their patients.”
Both Benz and Confluent Health celebrate these members from across the family in their achievement, including:
Advanced Physical Therapy
- Jared Gerstenkorn, OCS
Capitol Physical Therapy
- Julie Lombardo, OCS, WCS (10 yr. retest for recertification)
Elite Physical Therapy
- Juliana Meeker, OCS
Foothills Sports Medicine & Physical Therapy
- Jack Dylan Webster, OCS
- Meryl Cripe, OCS
- Andre Colbert, OCS
Pappas | OPT Physical and Hand Therapy
- Matt Medeiros, SCS
- Molly Douglas, SCS
Physical Therapy Central
- Janie Taylor, OCS (10 yr. retest for recertification)
- Kendall Welch, OCS
- Andrea Allison, OCS
- Marilyn Kozlowski, OCS
- Jessica Kuwitzky, SCS
- Kayla Smith, OCS
ProRehab Physical Therapy (Louisville)
- Greg McCullough, OCS
- Morgan Longnaker, OCS
- Riley Sturzbacher, OCS
ProRehab Physical Therapy (Evansville)
- Reece Rounder, CHT
Strive Physical Therapy & Sport Rehabilitation
- Justin Bernardo, OCS
Texas Physical Therapy Specialists
- Justin Tanton, OCS
- Christine Brown, OCS
- Andrew Pepin, OCS
- Holly Hambacher, OCS
- Julia Harrison, OCS
- Laura Midura, OCS
- Devin Freda, OCS
- Beth DeVos, SCS
- Laura Contreras, OCS
- Tarra Sahim, OCS
Tallahassee Orthopedic & Sports Physical Therapy
- Marcus Owens, SCS
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