Acute Conversations

APTA Acute Care
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We share engaging conversations about acute care physical therapy so you can connect to your profession.

  1. 10/12/2025

    The Specialization Shift: Inspiring Growth in Acute Care Practice

    Show Notes  Specialization can shape a therapist’s confidence, identity, and long-term trajectory — but the pathways to get there aren’t always clear. In this episode of Acute Conversations, co-hosts Dr. Leo Arguelles and Dr. Nicole Neveau sit down with Dr. Leslie Ayres, Rajashree Mondkar, and Dr. Terry Schwing to explore what it really takes to pursue the Cardiovascular & Pulmonary (CCS) specialty. Together, they unpack three very different journeys: the traditional pathway, residency-based training, and fellowship experience. Leslie reflects on how a single listserv email led her to a CVP residency five years into practice. Rajashree shares what it meant to become one of the first CCS clinicians in Texas back in 1994. Terry explains how fellowship training and outcomes research shaped his voice in ICU mobility and cardiopulmonary care. Across their stories, one message stands out: there is no single “right” pathway — but there is always a spark. Listeners will hear candid reflections on mentorship, research expectations, clinical identity, and how specialization deepens bedside reasoning across acute care settings. Whether you’re a student curious about your future or a clinician considering your next step, this conversation offers clarity, inspiration, and practical insight into navigating the specialization journey. Today’s Guests: Leslie Ayers PT, DPT, EdD, CCS leslie.ayres@unthsc.edu Rajashree Mondkar PT, MSPT, CCS MondkarR@gmail.com Terry Schwing PT, DPT CCS Guest Quotes: 6:47  Leslie “ And that’s really what inspired me was just, I was thinking, I want to know more about these patients. I wanna get better at treating these patients. I wanna be an expert at this.” 17:34 Terry “ I think specialization really gives you an opportunity to delve deep into what you’re interested in and learn probably a lot more than you maybe thought you would need to know or I topics outside of maybe what your niche current interest is in. And it opens up your world as to all the different things that physical therapy is able to provide for patients.” 20:07 Rajashree “ I think they students, definitely very important because even if you’re not ready to do specialization, as soon as you are out, because you need few years of experience, you need to find where you are passionate about. You can see that even if there, there are many places, maybe the residencies are not available for cardiopulmonary, but you can reach out… You can find mentoring, mentorship, you can find avenues how to get there. And people are, I think people are eager to always guide others. To get to where you are. And that’s how our profession grows.” Rapid Responses:  How fast do you think you could run a hundred meters pushing a crash cart? Leslie “ So my rule for running is to finish in the upright position, but you don’t have to be first. So as long as you get there cart intact, it doesn’t matter how long it takes.” Rajashree “ And my goal is to get there and not that crash cart meeting for me.” Terry “ Yeah. I don’t know. I feel like a lot of the crash carts sometimes have rickety wheels, so I might just be trying to get it there as well. And just not falling and tipping the whole cart with me.” You know you work in acute care when… Leslie “ when you spent 30 minutes with a patient just to go to the restroom and their question is. That’s all we’re doing today.” Rajashree “when you are untangling lines and wiping somebody’s bumps. I did not know in PT school when I went that I’ll be. “ Terry “ I guess I might say you’re an acute therapist and I always think about whenever I’m watching like TV shows or something like that and I see like someone intubated or an eek g on the screen and things like that. And I’m like, I’m always like, okay, is that the appropriate rhythm or intubation like method for like for this patient at that time? And I’m always like they did okay.” Links: Vital Pathways Webinar Connect with our host and the podcast! Leo Arguelles (LEE-O R-GWELL-IS) largue2@uic.edu Twitter @LeoArguellesPT Nicole Neveau ngunder1@gmail.com LinkedIn Danny Young daniel.young@unlv.edu X – @DLYoungDPTPhD Bluesky – @dlyoungdptphd.bsky.social Interested in being a future guest? APTA Acute Care: Website Awards Journal Access https://www.aptaacutecare.org/page/AspireandAchieveMentorshipProgram Twitter @AcuteCareAPTA Facebook APTA Acute Care Instagram @AcademyAcutePT YouTube  APTA Acute Care Podcast APTA Acute Care Resources APTA Adult Vital Signs APTA Lab Values Document Webinar Recordings

    26 min

  2. 18/11/2025

    Measuring What Matters: A New Path for Acute Care Practice

    How do we measure what truly matters in acute care — and why does it finally feel possible to do it well? In this week’s episode, co-hosts Dr. Nicole Neveau and Dr. Leo Arguelles sit down with Dr. Caitlyn Crandall and Dr. Lindsey Fresenko, two contributors to the new clinical practice guideline, “A Core Set of Outcome Measures to Assess Physical Function for Adults Participating in Physical Therapist Treatment in the Hospital.” Together, they unpack how this Core Outcome Measures (COMs) Set was built, what makes each measure clinically feasible, and how the guideline is already reshaping evaluation, communication, and discharge planning across hospital-based physical therapy. Caitlyn and Lindsey share what surprised them during development, how psychometric rigor and real-world feasibility shaped the final set, and why standardized measurement doesn’t replace clinical reasoning — it strengthens it. They also preview their upcoming APTA Acute Care webinar and reflect on how a shared measurement language can help clinicians advocate for staffing, demonstrate value, and elevate patient care. Whether you’re an ICU therapist, med-surg clinician, educator, or student, this conversation offers a clearer, more confident path for integrating outcome measures in acute care. Today’s Guests: Dr. Caitlyn Crandall, PT, DPT, CCS, RYT Email: caitlyn.crandall@unchealth.unc.edu LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caitlyn-crandall-dpt Instagram: @CaitlynCrandall   Dr. Lindsey Fresenko, PT, DPT, PhD Email: lindsey.fresenko@utoledo.edu Publications: • PTJ CPG: https://academic.oup.com/ptj/article/105/6/pzaf076/8140951 • CC&E Journal: https://journals.lww.com/ccejournal/fulltext/2024/12000/rehabilitation_and_social_determinants_of_health.8.aspx Guest Quotes: Caitlyn: “These outcome measures aren’t meant to replace clinical decision-making — they’re meant to support it.” Lindsey: “The importance of having an evidence-based core outcome measure set is now utilizing it in practice.” Caitlyn: “Parts of these outcome measures are already what we’re doing. The COMs help organize and standardize it.” Rapid Responses: What’s the dumbest way you’ve injured yourself? • Caitlyn: “I fell off my horse — he stopped, I kept going.” • Lindsey: “I stepped on my own pinky toe in middle school and broke it.” You know you work in acute care when… • Caitlyn: “You’ve led a parade down the hallway with ECMO, an IABP, and half the team following behind.” • Lindsey: “Carrying socks in your pocket is an everyday thing.” Links: A Core Set of Outcome Measures to Assess Physical Function for Adults Participating in Physical Therapist Treatment in the Hospital- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40403754/ 🎧 Connect with Our Hosts Leo Arguelles (pronounced LEE-O R-GWELL-IS) 📧 largue2@uic.edu 🐦 Twitter: @LeoArguellesPT Nicole Neveau, PT, DPT, NCS 📧 ngunder1@gmail.com 🔗 LinkedIn: Nicole Neveau Danny Young, PT, DPT, PhD 📧 daniel.young@unlv.edu 🐦 X: @DLYoungDPTPhD 🌐 Bluesky: @dlyoungdptphd.bsky.social 🎧 Listen now on Spotify | Apple Podcasts (Or wherever you get your podcasts)

    36 min

  3. 12/11/2025

    From Bedside to Breakthrough: Redefining Critical Care Mobility

    Show Notes: What does it take to move ICU rehab forward — and who’s leading the charge? In this episode, co-hosts Dr. Leo Arguelles and Dr. Daniel Young sit down with Dr. Monica Silva Damasceno (MD Anderson Cancer Center) and Dr. Vinh Tran (University of New Mexico) — two clinicians who shared the stage at CSM’s ICU Rehab panel alongside Dale Needham, Jen Ryan, and Chris Wells. Together, they unpack what’s changing in critical care physical therapy — from dismantling barriers and writing mobility into unit culture, to building true interprofessional collaboration that lasts beyond a single champion. Monica shares her journey from Brazil to Houston Methodist’s Critical Care Fellowship, and how mentorship shaped her vision for ICU practice. Vinh reflects on his path from cardiac medicine to academia, bridging implementation science with bedside experience. The conversation highlights the power of structure, communication, and persistence in advancing early mobility — especially in smaller hospitals where “doing more with less” is a daily reality. Today’s Guests: Monica Damasceno PT, DPT, CCS monicasdapt@gmail.com linkedin.com/in/monica-silva-damasceno-pt-dpt-ccs-03989965 Vihn Tran PT, DPT, PhD, CCS https://www.linkedin.com/in/vinh-tran-169015200/ Guest Quotes: 15:25 Vihn “ I agree in the shorter duration just because by necessity, if they’re in the ICU, they’re medically unstable, right? So you’re limited on how aggressive you can be, although I do think we can be more aggressive than the average person thinks. So yeah, I think that seems reasonable to, to shorter sessions, but perhaps more frequently. With a caveat that there is potential out there to do longer sessions in certain really niche or precise circumstances.” 20:24   Advice for those therapists that working like the smaller kind of rural community hospitals that wanna kind of make a dent and or wanna start implementing more ICU rehab? Vihn “ ..really, it’s not just a PT or rehab driven process, right. Like we in rehab can just flick a switch and all of a sudden this happens. It requires an extensive amount of collaboration between providers, nurses, techs, your own staff, your equipment managers. Everyone needs to be on board with what the overall aim is. So in order to really get the ball rolling first to me, like identify champions in, in allied communities. So whether it’s a nursing manager that potentially sees the value in early mobility, perhaps it’s a Mutually beneficial relationship where we can provide higher quality therapy or an earlier timeframe. At the same time, we can relieve some of the mobility tasks that nursing might have to do or help them do it in a more safe aspect.” Monica “ ..having an agreement with your team and having the the champions. One from or  multiple people from different groups, a doctor, nurses, and then have a plan of what you see for your unit in the future with this, those people, and create your practices like every day. Cultivating that practice of mobility and encouraging and helping each other.” 29:06 Monica “ one of the strategies to try to encourage more mobility is asking. What is the mobility plan during the rounds? Any rounds you have to have an answer. Then, then you think about mobility.” Rapid Responses:  What’s your go-to karaoke song?  Monica: “it is Mariah Carey. It’s song Mariah Carey. Always Mariah Carey. Yeah. Any song that I can find? Mariah Carey. Which is the hardest to sing. Can you imagine talking about the scales there? Vihn: I’m from St. Louis and I love Nelly, so I just gotta go with Nelly.” You know you work in acute care when… Vihn: “ When you don’t care what you’re wearing in the work or how you look, I should say that way.” Monica: “ The scrubs have extra scrubs, I would say and all. And also having the safety pins in your pocket to secure the lines.” Links: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-6275-4362 🎧 Connect with Our Hosts Leo Arguelles (pronounced LEE-O R-GWELL-IS) 📧 largue2@uic.edu 🐦 Twitter: @LeoArguellesPT Nicole Neveau, PT, DPT, NCS 📧 ngunder1@gmail.com 🔗 LinkedIn: Nicole Neveau Danny Young, PT, DPT, PhD 📧 daniel.young@unlv.edu 🐦 X: @DLYoungDPTPhD 🌐 Bluesky: @dlyoungdptphd.bsky.social 🎧 Listen now on Spotify | Apple Podcasts (Or wherever you get your podcasts)

    53 min

  4. 08/10/2025

    Breaking Boundaries: How Acute Care PTs Are Shaping a New Specialty

    Show Notes Acute care physical therapists have long known that their work is different—fast-paced, data-driven, and grounded in collaboration at the highest level of care. Now, that difference is finally being recognized. In this episode of Acute Conversations, Dr. Jennifer Ryan joins hosts Dr. Leo Arguelles and Dr. Daniel Young to share an inside look at the ongoing effort to establish Acute Care as a board-certified specialty through ABPTS. Jen traces the movement’s roots from the early 2000s to today’s evidence-rich, residency-supported landscape and explains what the next steps mean for clinicians at the bedside. From lessons learned through years of research and advocacy to the evolving role of interprofessional collaboration, this conversation highlights the depth and expertise of hospital-based PT practice. Whether you’re a new grad or a seasoned clinician, this episode will leave you inspired to see acute care not just as a setting—but as a specialty built on purpose, complexity, and professional pride. Today’s Guests: Jennifer Ryan PT, DPT, MS APTA Acute Care Vice president and Project Coordinator of the Petition for Specialization jennifer-ryan@northwestern.edu Guest Quotes: 10:31 “ when I hear colleagues say like, acute care is a specialty, really?  It tells me that I need to help them understand what we do.” 24:01 “…in this whole specialty assessment, in this really long survey you had to have a understanding of physiology and a pathophysiology of every body system. You have to have a keen awareness of not necessarily. Everything memorized, right? But a keen awareness of your level of awareness of those and your need to seek out more resources, or you need to confirm information you know, and then all the clinical sciences, all the laboratory values, all the imaging, all the pieces like that.” 26:14 “So now we’re in the perfecting phase one phase. And so demand is one of the categories and need is one of the categories. Demand is how many PTs will. Want to sit for specialization and the turnaround time and all that…The need piece is like. Why do you need PTs to work function at this level? Is someone else taking care of it?” Rapid Responses:   Now you’ve lived in Chicago your whole life, but if you weren’t in the city, where would you go for fun?   “Well, I live in the burbs. I work in the city. That’s been 99% of my experience. I’m never gonna live more than a half a tank of gas from Mount Prospect, Illinois. That’s, and where would I go for fun? I totally love being in my garden. I was picked, I picked about 40 things outta my garden, brought ’em to work today. I, yeah, fun. Fun is like where my family is. My dogs are all that kind of thing.” You know you work in acute care when… “ You know you’re working at acute care when it’s. No big deal to stand in the bathroom with a complete stranger. “ Links: https://specialization.apta.org/for-specialists/volunteer/specialization-academy-of-content-experts https://academy.aptaacutecare.org/ 🎧 Connect with Our Hosts Leo Arguelles (pronounced LEE-O R-GWELL-IS) 📧 largue2@uic.edu 🐦 Twitter: @LeoArguellesPT Nicole Neveau, PT, DPT, NCS 📧 ngunder1@gmail.com 🔗 LinkedIn: Nicole Neveau Danny Young, PT, DPT, PhD 📧 daniel.young@unlv.edu 🐦 X: @DLYoungDPTPhD 🌐 Bluesky: @dlyoungdptphd.bsky.social 🎧 Listen now on Spotify | Apple Podcasts (Or wherever you get your podcasts) #AcuteCare #PhysicalTherapy #ClinicalEducation #HealthcareLeadership Interested in being a future guest? APTA Acute Care: Website Awards Journal Access https://www.aptaacutecare.org/page/AspireandAchieveMentorshipProgram Twitter @AcuteCareAPTA Facebook APTA Acute Care Instagram @AcademyAcutePT YouTube  APTA Acute Care Podcast APTA Acute Care Resources APTA Adult Vital Signs APTA Lab Values Document Webinar Recordings 2026 Elections

    39 min

  5. 24/09/2025

    Cultivating Growth and Purpose With New Co-Host Nicole Neveau

    Show Notes  In this episode of Acute Conversations, we welcome Dr. Nicole Neveau, PT, DPT, NCS — Director of Rehabilitation Services at SSM Health St. Louis University Hospital and our newest co-host. Nicole shares her path into acute care, from unfolding paper charts as a new grad to leading a team of more than 100 therapists. She reflects on lessons learned in trauma and neuro ICUs, the importance of mentorship, and why she sees therapists as consultants who guide recovery through evidence, collaboration, and patient stories. Alongside host Dr. Leo Arguelles, Nicole also previews the upcoming 2026 Bridge the Gap Conference in Chicago and what it means for connecting research with practice. Today’s Guests: Nicole Neveau, PT, DPT, NCS 📧 ngunder1@gmail.com 🔗 LinkedIn: Nicole Neveau Guest Quotes: 14:35 “  In acute care, it’s about the story. Of where that patient is right now and about that risk adjustment of what? As a physical therapist, I need to dose intervention to maximize their recovery without increasing their risk of harm at the point where they are the most critically ill.” 28:28 “ We have to be more precise about how we apply our services and, and be a consulting service…  it also means that as clinicians we’re making decisions that frontline are making decisions with their caseload every day. Yeah. It’s not a simple, here’s your list of six people that you’re gonna go see. Don’t stop until you see all of ’em. Mm-hmm. It’s much more like, what do your people on this list need to maximize their recovery to help with their discharge planning and how are you going to let your day unfold?” Rapid Responses:  What snack best represents you?  “Oh, just all the time. I don’t even know that there needs to be one. I am a snacker. I love Chips or cookies or you know what, I, I love coffee, so I drink a lot of coffee, so that might be, I, if I had to pick one snack forever, it would be Coffee with a lot of cream and sugar in it.” You know you work in acute care when…  “ when you have scratched your patient’s back for the first time and they just start melting and saying, oh my gosh, no one’s done. You know, I’ve been on my back in this bed. So that’s, it’s it. The little things, it build thing. You build a relationship.” Links: https://www.aptaacutecare.org/page/bridgethegap 🎧 Connect with Our Hosts Leo Arguelles (pronounced LEE-O R-GWELL-IS) 📧 largue2@uic.edu 🐦 Twitter: @LeoArguellesPT Nicole Neveau, PT, DPT, NCS 📧 ngunder1@gmail.com 🔗 LinkedIn: Nicole Neveau Danny Young, PT, DPT, PhD 📧 daniel.young@unlv.edu 🐦 X: @DLYoungDPTPhD 🌐 Bluesky: @dlyoungdptphd.bsky.social 🎧 Listen now on Spotify | Apple Podcasts (Or wherever you get your podcasts) #AcuteCare #PhysicalTherapy #ClinicalEducation #HealthcareLeadership Interested in being a future guest? APTA Acute Care: Website Awards Journal Access https://www.aptaacutecare.org/page/AspireandAchieveMentorshipProgram Twitter @AcuteCareAPTA Facebook APTA Acute Care Instagram @AcademyAcutePT YouTube  APTA Acute Care Podcast APTA Acute Care Resources APTA Adult Vital Signs APTA Lab Values Document Webinar Recordings 2026 Elections

    46 min

  6. 10/09/2025

    Unlock Your Passion For Change With New Co-Host Danny Young

    Show Notes What inspires someone to change the course of their career — and, ultimately, their profession? In this episode of Acute Conversations, we introduce our newest co-host, Dr. Daniel (Danny) Young, PT, DPT, PhD. Danny shares the moment a chance encounter sparked his passion for physical therapy, his early experiences pioneering ICU mobility at Creighton, and his transition into academia at UNLV. Alongside host Dr. Leo Arguelles, Danny reflects on the role of mentorship, the challenge of building confidence in new clinicians, and why generating stronger evidence is essential for advancing acute care practice. From personal stories to research insights, Danny brings both candor and vision to his new role on the podcast team. Today’s Guests: Danny Young, PT, DPT, PhD 📧 daniel.young@unlv.edu 🐦 X: @DLYoungDPTPhD 🌐 Bluesky: @dlyoungdptphd.bsky.social Guest Quotes: 11:28:  “…the lack of confidence is a reflection most often of just some. Some humility that the students have. And so I try to reassure students that it’s a good thing that they feel a little bit hesitant and unsure of themselves. That it’s a recognition of the things that they don’t know. So I, I just first want to acknowledge that not feeling confident is okay. Yeah. And is actually something that’s probably reflects some good attributes.” 15:40: “ One of the things that fairly quickly started to really bother me was the debates that I would have with nurses or physicians… I’ve received such opposition for so many patients about early intervention. That I, I went and did a literature search, you know, because I didn’t get any training in school about early intervention. Like I said, it wasn’t a common part of practice then. Right. And. So I do a literature search and I find nothing, there was no evidence. Now there was evidence that bedrest was bad, right? Right. So we had evidence that staying in bed was a problem. What we didn’t have was evidence that it was safe or helpful to start mobilizing those people earlier. And most of the physicians and nurses at that time just assumed that there’s no way around the negative effects of bedrest for these people who are really sick.    There’s no evidence to inform these decisions that I have to make every day. And that’s gotta change. And. Why am I not the person to try and answer those questions?” 35:26: “ I think we’ve got to have better evidence and I’m. I’m committed to trying to help to create it.” Rapid Responses:  What’s your most favorite way to exercise, Danny? “ I commute by bike. I spend between two and two and a half hours every day riding a bike to and from the campus here.And I love mountain biking as well. So commuting is, is how I get most of my fitness. But I, every time I can get out on the dirt trails, I do that too.” You know you work in acute care when…   You wear different clothes home than you wore when you went in. You have to change during the day. 🎧 Connect with Our Hosts Leo Arguelles (pronounced LEE-O R-GWELL-IS) 📧 largue2@uic.edu 🐦 Twitter: @LeoArguellesPT Nicole Neveau, PT, DPT, NCS 📧 ngunder1@gmail.com 🔗 LinkedIn: Nicole Neveau Danny Young, PT, DPT, PhD 📧 daniel.young@unlv.edu 🐦 X: @DLYoungDPTPhD 🌐 Bluesky: @dlyoungdptphd.bsky.social 🎧 Listen now on Spotify | Apple Podcasts (Or wherever you get your podcasts) #AcuteCare #PhysicalTherapy #ClinicalEducation #HealthcareLeadership Interested in being a future guest? APTA Acute Care: Website Awards Journal Access https://www.aptaacutecare.org/page/AspireandAchieveMentorshipProgram Twitter @AcuteCareAPTA Facebook APTA Acute Care Instagram @AcademyAcutePT YouTube  APTA Acute Care Podcast APTA Acute Care Resources APTA Adult Vital Signs APTA Lab Values Document Webinar Recordings 2026 Elections

    43 min

  7. 13/08/2025

    Ethel Frese On Acute Care: Pearls That Will Energize Your Practice and Growth

    Show Notes Ethel Frese, PT, DPT, MHS, CCS, FAPTA is one of the most respected voices in acute and cardiopulmonary physical therapy. In this episode, she shares the pearls that will energize your practice and growth—from building stronger patient connections to fostering collaboration with the healthcare team. Whether you’re new to acute care or a seasoned clinician, her insights will challenge, inspire, and remind you why this work matters. Today’s Guests: Ethel Frese, PT, DPT, MHS, CCS, FAPTA Professor Emeritus Saint Louis University, Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Certified Clinical Specialist ethel.frese@health.slu.edu Guest Quotes: 17:46 “ the therapist who took my place in Chattanooga… she’s always told students and people that I’ve worked with that one of the best gifts to me as a teacher is to have someone you’ve taught do better than the teacher.  And I have a lot of really good gifts that way. Lots of people I’ve seen have gone way beyond their teacher and, and that’s huge to me.” 28:54 “ I think that’s a value of teaching.  You have to go back and think, now, why do I do it that way?” Rapid Responses:  Name one therapist that has been influential in your career. “Oh, that’s an easy one. Her name is Mary Chrisman.  She was the therapist that I went to at the hospital when the other therapist would not answer my questions. And she’s a friend even to today… You know you work in acute care when…   “When you can manage. I’m gonna say acute illness, but you know, ill patients who need specialist, very specialized care.    And that you can manage the, the really sick patients and the not so sick. Yeah. And you know, you’re good at vital signs and ECG and ventilators and all the machinery that you see in acute care. Yeah. So, I guess that’s my answer.” 🎧 Connect with Our Hosts Leo Arguelles (pronounced LEE-O R-GWELL-IS) 📧 largue2@uic.edu 🐦 Twitter: @LeoArguellesPT Nicole Neveau, PT, DPT, NCS 📧 ngunder1@gmail.com 🔗 LinkedIn: Nicole Neveau Danny Young, PT, DPT, PhD 📧 daniel.young@unlv.edu 🐦 X: @DLYoungDPTPhD 🌐 Bluesky: @dlyoungdptphd.bsky.social 🎧 Listen now on Spotify | Apple Podcasts (Or wherever you get your podcasts) #AcuteCare #PhysicalTherapy #ClinicalEducation #HealthcareLeadership Interested in being a future guest? APTA Acute Care: Website Awards Journal Access https://www.aptaacutecare.org/page/AspireandAchieveMentorshipProgram Twitter @AcuteCareAPTA Facebook APTA Acute Care Instagram @AcademyAcutePT YouTube  APTA Acute Care Podcast APTA Acute Care Resources APTA Adult Vital Signs APTA Lab Values Document Webinar Recordings 2026 Elections

    51 min

  8. 23/07/2025

    Oncologic Acute Care: Informative Care That Will Keep Them Strong

    Show Notes What does it mean to practice “informative care” in the hospital setting—and how can rehab providers help patients undergoing cancer treatment stay strong throughout their hospitalization? In this episode, we speak with Galen Schram, PT, DPT, a board-certified clinical specialist in oncologic physical therapy and faculty member of the Acute Care PT Residency Program at NYU Langone Health. Galen shares his journey into acute care, his passion for serving hematology/oncology patients, and how he leverages interdisciplinary collaboration to support patients across phases of survivorship—including during hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). We also touch on his background in narrative medicine, and how storytelling can enhance connection and meaning in clinical work. 🔗 Learn more about the July 30th APTA Acute Care webinar Galen is co-leading with OT colleague Emma Kiernan, hosted by the Practice Committee: https://www.aptaacutecare.org/general/custom.asp?page=WebinarSeries Today’s Guests: Galen Schram PT, DPT Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Oncologic Physical Therapy Galen.Schram@nyulangone.org Guest Quotes: 12:58 “ But it’s still worthwhile for us to, to go in and do an assessment, provide some much needed education. I have all staff that work on the oncology population screen. Every single patient for CIPN ( Chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy) . This is often like something that can go under diagnosed. And, and just provide education about what maybe to expect….When a patient’s admitted to the hospital education is one of our most important interventions, for sure.” 20:30 “ …One example is I attend interdisciplinary rounds every Tuesday. So I hear from the nurse practitioners medically how the patients are doing. Based on my own chart reviews and hearing the nurse practitioners and the bedside nurses describe how the patients have been lately, I make a decision about which of my patients are candidates to go to my gym class. So every Tuesday we host a gym class for patients who are medically appropriate and have the approval from their medical providers. So based on. My input from the nurse practitioners, that’s how I help decide which patients will make the best can candidates for that gym class, who will have the most success, who’s getting close enough to discharge that I really wanna optimize their strength for a home discharge.” 26:19 “  I always say like, I’m a human before, I’m a physical therapist. And I think my writing is one way that I’m able to reflect both of those things.” Rapid Responses: If you had a theme song before you walk into a patient’s room, what song would that be?  “The opening theme song to the show, the Mindy Project, which was a great show. I just love that song. So that would be it. It’s very upbeat and whimsical.” You know you work in acute care when… “ You are unfazed by. Am I allowed to curse by? By shit.” Links: July 30th Webinar: https://www.aptaacutecare.org/events/eventdetails.aspx?id=1977918 https://blreview.org/off-the-page/off-the-page-tattoos/ https://www.theintima.org/blog/on-trauma-and-hope-by-galen-schram 🎧 Connect with Our Hosts Leo Arguelles (pronounced LEE-O R-GWELL-IS) 📧 largue2@uic.edu 🐦 Twitter: @LeoArguellesPT Nicole Neveau, PT, DPT, NCS 📧 ngunder1@gmail.com 🔗 LinkedIn: Nicole Neveau Danny Young, PT, DPT, PhD 📧 daniel.young@unlv.edu 🐦 X: @DLYoungDPTPhD 🌐 Bluesky: @dlyoungdptphd.bsky.social 🎧 Listen now on Spotify | Apple Podcasts (Or wherever you get your podcasts) #AcuteCare #PhysicalTherapy Interested in being a future guest? APTA Acute Care: Website Awards Journal Access https://www.aptaacutecare.org/page/AspireandAchieveMentorshipProgram Twitter @AcuteCareAPTA Facebook APTA Acute Care Instagram @AcademyAcutePT YouTube  APTA Acute Care Podcast APTA Acute Care Resources APTA Adult Vital Signs  APTA Lab Values Document  Webinar Recordings 2026 Elections

    37 min
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About

We share engaging conversations about acute care physical therapy so you can connect to your profession.

Information

  • Creator
    APTA Acute Care
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2025
  • Episodes
    55
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Show Website
    Acute Conversations

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