Healthy Wealthy & Smart

Thanks for tuning into the Healthy Wealthy and Smart Podcast! I had the pleasure of chatting with Mike Connors about advocacy in physical therapy. Mike is a private practice physical therapy owner, an outside consultant for a professional ballet company in Fort Worth and an adjunct professor in orthopaedic physical therapy for the DPT program at the University of North Texas Health Science Center. In addition, Mike is the current President of the Texas Physical Therapy Association advocating regularly for the PT profession in Austin and DC on regulatory and payment policy issues impacting PT. In this episode, we discuss: -Levels of advocacy and ways to demonstrate the efficacy of physical therapy -Mike’s pitch for APTA membership -Mike’s initial wellness consultation and his focus on preventative care -Advice to new professionals on empathy and preventing burnout -And so much more!   Mike stresses the need for PT advocacy which can take many forms including calling an insurance company, talking to medical colleagues, and increasing awareness in the community in addition to legislative change. He states, “What did you do today that was in the patient’s best interest that the patient couldn’t do for themselves or didn't have the knowledge or the resources to do for themselves? We treat patients. We manage their complex presentations, but we do a lot more than I think we give ourselves credit for. That's a big part of why it is we don't have the widespread knowledge base about what we do because we don’t talk enough about what we do. PT has become the new fight club and the #1 rule of PT is not to talk about PT.”   Mike believes there are untapped candidates for physical therapy services due to public unawareness of the healthcare benefits. “Ironically, in private practice, we are sitting here all competing against one another for 20% of the pie and what we’re not seeing is another 75+% that’s out there that’s doing everything but physical therapy.”   Mike encourages entrepreneurship within physical therapy and recommends to continually strive for excellence. Mike advices, “Entrepreneurs are going to continually learn and evolve over time. Count your successes as much as you count your failures as long as you learn from them and you evolve then it was a worthwhile endeavor.”   For more about Mike: Mike has a BS in Biology from Stockton College with a minor in Psychology (2001). His entry level degree in physical therapy is a Master of Physical Therapy from University of Medicine & Dentistry of NJ-Rutgers University (2003). Mike has a post professional Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from Temple University (2008). He became a board certified specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy from the American Board of PT Specialties in 2011. Mike is currently finishing (ABD) the remaining requirements for completion of a PhD degree in Physical Therapy with an emphasis in applied biomechanics from Texas Woman's University (Anticipated completion 2016).   Mike began working with GTC in October 2004. He most recently rejoined the GTC family in June 2015 as the Director of the Fort Worth Clinic.   Mike's focus and specialization in orthopaedic physical therapy makes him an efficient clinician in managing patients with orthopedic dysfunction. He utilizes a multimodal approach to meet the needs of his patients and clients that include spinal manipulation, dry needling, KT taping, and various other interventions. Mike is certified in functional dry needling from Kinetacore. He has experience working with patients of all ages, from kids to adults and from the weekend warrior to the elite athlete. He is an outside consultant for a professional ballet company in Fort Worth and is an adjunct professor in orthopaedic physical therapy for the DPT program at the University of North Texas Health Science Center. In addition, Mike is the current President of the Texas Physical Therapy Association advocating regularly for the PT profession in Austin and DC on regulatory and payment policy issues impacting PT.   Mike is happily married to his wife Shannon. He enjoys spending time with his family, that includes two beautiful daughters. Mike enjoys staying active, running, traveling, exercising, biking, golfing and staying active in his faith community.   Personal statement: It's ALWAYS all about the patient. We exist as PTs to help patients move better with less pain. It's my pleasure to help patients achieve this goal on a day to day basis.   Social Media: Greater Therapy Centers Twitter Facebook   Thanks for listening and subscribing to the podcast! Make sure to connect with me on twitter and facebook to stay updated on all of the latest! Show your support for the show by leaving a rating and review on iTunes!   Have a great week and stay Healthy Wealthy and Smart!   Xo Karen   P.S. Do you want to be a stand out podcast guest? Make sure to grab the tools from the FREE eBook on the home page! Check out my latest blog post on The Do's and Don'ts of Social Media!   P.S.S. Check out the inaugural Women in PT Summit here! Sign up now as space is limited!

On this week’s episode, I share the first part of my talk with Dr. Bronnie Thompson from one year ago on chronic pain management which will change the way you practice. Dr. Thompson has worked in the field of chronic pain management, helping people develop ‘self management’ skills for 20 years and has a passion to help people experiencing chronic health problems achieve their potential. In this episode, we discuss: -How to learn to live well despite chronic pain and her research on the 3 phases to reoccupy your self-concept -How to incorporate values based pain management into your practice -The value of motivational interviewing, the specifics of implementation, and why it’s not always about pain -Why patience is key to a person-centered practice -And so much more!   Healthcare providers should address the nature of chronic pain and the goal of treatment should be to educate patients on how to understand and manage their pain. Dr. Thompson found that for patients with chronic pain, “Hearing that this pain is likely to remain was a really important turning point for all the participants. So they stopped that search for the cure.”   Dr. Thompson promotes a psychosocial approach to learning to live well with chronic pain and making new sense of your self-concept.   Dr. Thompson states, “When pain comes on, life becomes incoherent—it doesn’t make sense anymore. Your self-concept, the person that you think you are, suddenly goes. You can't rely on yourself to do the things that you used to be able to do and the expectations you have of yourself disappear. For a long time, people are sustained on this search to go back to the person they used to be. But 5, 10, 15 years later, they are never going to be that person. It’s about saying, ‘Who can I be now?’ The process of learning to live well is about recognizing, ‘I do need to let go of that desire to go back to my old self and look to build this new person.’”   One of the key aspects of learning to live with chronic pain is to find a sense of community and begin building new meaning in your life. Dr. Thompson states, “Carrying that invisible sort of separation, ‘I’m not who I used to be, I feel like I’m not who I used to be and yet nobody can see that’ is so isolating. It’s unbelievably isolating. To be able to say, ‘I can connect,’—what you do connects you with other people, the way you dress, the way you happen to tidy your house or not, the way that you drive—you’re going to look at other people and you’re going to say I'm like them or I'm different from them and that’s how we find our way.”   For more about Dr. Thompson: I trained as an occupational therapist, and graduated in 1984. Since then I’ve continued study at postgraduate level and my papers have included business skills, ergonomics, mental health therapies, and psychology. I completed by Masters in Psychology in 1999, and started my PhD in 2007. I’ve now finished my thesis (yay!) and can call myself Dr, or as my kids call me, Dr Mum.   I have a passion to help people experiencing chronic health problems achieve their potential. I have worked in the field of chronic pain management, helping people develop ‘self management’ skills for 20 years. Many of the skills are directly applicable to people with other health conditions.   My way of working: collaboratively – all people have limitations and vulnerabilities – as well as strengths and potential. I use a cognitive and behavioural approach – therapy isn’t helpful unless there are visible changes! I don’t use this approach exclusively, because it is necessary to ‘borrow’ at times from other approaches, but I encourage ongoing evaluation of everything that is put forward as ‘therapy’. I’m especially drawn to what’s known as third wave CBT, things like mindfulness, ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) and occupation.   I’m also an educator. I take this role very seriously – it is as important to health care as research and clinical skill. I offer an active knowledge of the latest research, integrated with current clinical practice, and communicated to clinicians working directly with people experiencing chronic ill health. I’m a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Orthopaedic surgery & Musculoskeletal Medicine at the University of Otago Christchurch Health Sciences.   I also offer courses, training and supervision for therapists working with people experiencing chronic ill health.   Check out her blog HealthSkills for more great resources and follow Dr. Thompson on twitter, facebook, and LinkedIn.   Thanks for listening and subscribing to the podcast! Make sure to connect with me on twitter and facebook to stay updated on all of the latest! Show your support for the show by leaving a rating and review on iTunes!   Have a great week and stay Healthy Wealthy and Smart!   Xo Karen   P.S. Do you want to be a stand out podcast guest? Make sure to grab the tools from the FREE eBook on the home page! Check out my latest blog post on The Do's and Don'ts of Social Media!   P.S.S. Check out the inaugural Women in PT Summit here! Sign up now as space is limited!

On today’s episode of the Healthy, Wealthy and Smart Podcast, Dr. Rachna Patel joins me to discuss common misconceptions of medical marijuana. Dr. Patel has been practicing in the area of Medical Marijuana since 2012 and step-by-step walks patients through how to use medical marijuana for their specific medical condition.  In this episode, we discuss: -How medical marijuana functions in the body -Conditions that can be treated with medical marijuana and surprising outcomes -What the side effects of medical marijuana are and how to avoid them - Alternatives to smoking medical marijuana -Why lab-tested medical grade marijuana is very different from what’s found on the streets -And so much more!   The therapeutic range for medical marijuana varies from patient to patient. A practitioner can help find the optimal ratio of the THC and CBD components of the plant which work best for the patient. Dr. Patel states, “You can adjust the effect that the medication will have on you based on the proportions of these different chemicals.”   One of the practical benefits of medical marijuana is the fact that, “These chemicals are fat soluble… Patients don’t have to take this medication every day. Once you take it, you have stores of it in your body.”   Medical marijuana has proven to be less addictive and have fewer side effects. From Dr. Patel’s clinical experience, there is growing evidence that medical marijuana could serve as a potential alternative to opioids. “When I was reading the research studies, a couple studies I came across said that when medical marijuana is used in conjunction with opioids, the marijuana helps to reduce the dose of the opioids that you have to use. What I found surprisingly, patients were able to come off of a lot of these pain medications and just use medical marijuana in its place.“   There are potentially many patient populations that could benefit from the use of medical marijuana. For some conditions like fibromyalgia, medical marijuana has revolutionized patient treatment plans. “I expected [medical marijuana] to be a part of the arsenal, I didn't expect it to be the only tool in the arsenal that these patients were using.”   For more information on Dr. Patel: Dr. Rachna Patel has been practicing in the area of Medical Marijuana since 2012.  She step-by-step walks patients through how to use medical marijuana for their specific medical condition.  She completed her medical studies at Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine and her undergraduate studies at Northwestern University.  You can learn more about the work she does at www.DrRachnaPatel.com   Resources discussed on this show: YouTube channel How to Choose a Medical Marijuana Doctor.   Facebook Page: Listeners are welcome to ask questions on the page for Ask Me Anything on Wednesdays every week.    Thanks for listening and subscribing to the podcast! Make sure to connect with me on twitter and facebook to stay updated on all of the latest! Show your support for the show by leaving a rating and review on iTunes!   Have a great week and stay Healthy Wealthy and Smart!   Xo Karen   P.S. Do you want to be a stand out podcast guest? Make sure to grab the tools from the FREE eBook on the home page! Check out my latest blog post on The Do's and Don'ts of Social Media!   P.S.S. Check out the inaugural Women in PT Summit here! Sign up now as space is limited!  

On this week’s episode, I had the pleasure of discussing financial strategies for Doctor of Physical Therapy student loans with Joseph Reinke. Joseph Reinke is the CEO and founder of FitBUX, Inc which is introducing innovative finance products and technology to the student lending industry with a specific focus on physical therapists. In this episode, we discuss: -Why FitBUX is in the business of aiding human capital development -Helpful and actionable strategies to manage student loan debt -Options for new graduates in debt that want to start their own business -Why student debt should not get in the way of a worry-free retirement -And so much more!   Joe recommends starting as early as possible on the road to entrepreneurship if that is your long-term goal. “Even if you're a student and you know you're going to be an entrepreneur, start networking at all these events with people who have podcasts or have private practices. Get into that setting so all that human capital that you are developing is geared toward being that business owner because the more you do of that the higher probability you will be successful.”   Joe has found that finance is more about discipline and delaying gratification. Developing strategies to tackle financial obstacles can help provide the extra discipline needed. Joe states, “The other thing you’re doing that is even more important is you’re developing discipline. That’s one of the hardest things to do in finance. We want instant gratification on everything. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing in finance, it can be paying off your loan, saving for retirement, buying a house and paying that off—there is no instant gratification...”   Joe cautions his clients to consider the downside. The more prepared people are for unexpected shocks, the less they will struggle with financial obstacles. He recommends, “Keep it simple and strategize… The stress a lot of people get financially will be gone or it will be a lot less because you'll be prepared. That’s when I see a lot of people get into financial stresses. They just get hit with a tsunami at some time and they are not ready for it and that’s when you start seeing people stress out about money.”   For more about Joe: Joseph Reinke is the CEO and founder of Fitbux, Inc. FitBUX is introducing innovative finance products and technology to the student lending industry with a specific focus on physical therapists. Thus far in FitBUX’s beta test, they have helped PTs develop financial strategies on over $11mn in student loans. Joe has been in the finance industry for over a decade and is one of the few CFA Charterholders in the world who has experience in both wealth management and business valuation (globally, there are only 120,000 CFA Charterholders). He has hosted numerous live chats about student loans with SPTs across the country, presented at the California Student Conclave, appeared on podcasts, and written numerous financial blogs.   Resources: FitBUX: Sign-up for the beta test that is testing FitBUX technology to help answer SPTs and DPTs questions about student loans such as “do I invest or prepay my loans?”, “do I pay down my loans or go onto a Federal Income Driven repayment plan?”, “what are my refinancing options and should I refinance?”…And the beta test is FREE! FitBUX Blog for Physical Therapists FitBUX Blog on Finance FitBUX videos on student loans PT Pintcast Episode NewGradPT: How Physical Therapy Careers are Changing   Social Media: FitBUX Twitter FitPT Twitter Facebook LinkedIn   Thanks for listening and subscribing to the podcast! Make sure to connect with me on twitter and facebook to stay updated on all of the latest! Show your support for the show by leaving a rating and review on iTunes!   Have a great week and stay Healthy Wealthy and Smart!   Xo Karen   P.S. Do you want to be a stand out podcast guest? Make sure to grab the tools from the FREE eBook on the home page! Check out my latest blog post on The Do's and Don'ts of Social Media!   P.S.S. Check out the inaugural Women in PT Summit here! Sign up now as space is limited!    

On today’s episode of the podcast, Sarah Ecker PT, DPT, PRPC joins me to discuss the STAND (Sustainable Therapy And New Development) Haiti Project which is a nonprofit organization working to provide continual, orthopedic care to Haitian communities most in need. Sarah is a physical therapist specializing in pelvic health and has been traveling the country as a "Travel Therapist," working in some of the United States’ most impoverished communities. Sarah is STAND's Director of Pelvic Health and is continuing to help further the mission of STAND and ensure that women in Haiti have improved access to pelvic health and education. In this episode, we discuss: - What is the STAND Haiti Project and how you can get involved -How Sarah’s pelvic health specialty led to surprising insights while volunteering in Haiti -How language and cultural barriers impact your treatment -Advice for physical therapy volunteers traveling abroad -And so much more!   While volunteering in Haiti, Sarah began to realize that her pelvic health training was in need for this female population. She states, “Are the infections prevalent and common there? Sure, but also with chronic infection comes chronic tissue changes. We were definitely seeing a lot of prolapse, general pelvic floor dysfunction, different tissue changes, and incontinence. Things that are very common ailments I've seen in patients in the States. Just no one has ever really examined these women before. There is really very little, if any, gynecologist care or care surrounding pregnancy.”   After breaking through the language and cultural barriers, Sarah discovered that many Haitian women were not being treated for common pelvic health issues. She then set out to lead a team to focus specifically on pelvic health treatment. Sarah believes, “This is a population we can do something about. Once we started having that conversation and digging a little deeper with the women we were seeing that were in child bearing ages, it was really coming to the surface that they think this is normal, and this is okay, and this is something they have to live with.”   Empowering the Haitian women by educating them on pelvic health dysfunction was important to reaffirm their experiences. Sarah discovered, “I think this was a game changer when I said, ‘We see patients like this all the time in the United States. I treat these patients all the time. These are normal symptoms that happen with different life changes and experiences as a woman going through pregnancy and childbirth.’ Just to see the look on their faces when their like, ‘Oh, this is not just me. This is not my fault that I have these problems.’”   Once cultural barriers are broken and patient-therapist trust is built, educating patients can lead to breakthroughs. She stresses, “The most powerful, impactful thing you can do is to just start the conversation. It has to start with you because you’re the clinician and you have the information regardless of whether you have trepidation around even breaching the topic in cultures that stigmatize sex or pelvic health or embarrassing issues more than we do in our native countries… it's really just educating, disseminating the information, letting people know these are common problems and it’s not their fault and most importantly you can do something about it. That's the message that translates through any culture and any population.”   For more information about Sarah: Sarah Ecker, PT, DPT, PRPC received her Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from New York University in 2011 after working for several years in the science, medicine, and technology department of a publishing company in the New York City area. She fell in love with pelvic health early on in her physical therapy career and worked in the NYC area at a specialized practice during which time she received her Pelvic Rehabilitation Practitioner Certificate from the Herman and Wallace Institute. For the last few years, Sarah has been traveling the country as a "Travel Therapist," working in some of our nation's most impoverished communities in just about every setting imaginable. Last year, Sarah discovered STAND: The Haiti Project, volunteered for 2 weeks in May, and instantly fell in love with the project, the people of Haiti, and the amazing co-founders of the organization, Morgan Denny and Justin Dunaway. Sarah is committed to continuing to help further the mission of STAND, and as STAND's Director of Pelvic Health will help to ensure that women in Haiti have improved access to pelvic health and education. When Sarah is not working and traveling, she enjoys- well... traveling, cycling, anything that gets her outdoors, playing guitar, spending time with family, and home-brewing delicious craft beer.   For more information on STAND: STAND (Sustainable Therapy And New Development) believes that freedom from pain and disability is a basic human right, not a privilege. In rural Haiti, only the highest socioeconomic class can afford medical care, but most people do not have access at all. This lack of access to the most basic care leads to widespread suffering from disabling pain and injury. These unaddressed ailments engender an environment where people lack the ability to work, farm, and care for themselves and their families. The social effects of this lack of care and community support are too often poverty, famine, and even death. By providing access to rehabilitative care, STAND aims to decrease disability and reverse its social effects on the populace. As a result, Haitians will be able to work, provide for their families, contribute to their communities, and ultimately enjoy a higher quality of life.   STAND: The Haiti Project is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization working to provide continual, orthopedic care to Haitian communities most in need. To accomplish this, STAND will equip local health workers with a rigorous orthopedic curriculum. A competent team of Haitian practitioners will be able to provide relief from disabling pain and injury at STAND facilities year-round, allowing people to return to productive, happy, and fulfilling lives. You can give a man a fish, or you can teach a man to fish. We do both.   During our trips to Haiti, we work to restore people's functional mobility by providing comprehensive evaluation and treatment for a variety of conditions and injuries. Many have experienced traumatic and injurious events with no assistance or counsel from trained medical providers. Others are children born with orthopedic or neurological conditions. Each and every one of these people deserves a safe environment in which they can access quality and professional care. STAND provides manual physical therapy, wound care, patient education, orthotics, and the fabrication of prosthetics to meet the diverse needs of its patient population. Volunteer teams consisting of physical therapists, orthotists, prosthetists, general medical staff, educators, and students work to deliver these services to the highest standard. STAND also provides outreach programs to local hospitals, schools, orphanages, and assisted living facilities.   Ultimately, our clinics will be staffed year-round by STAND trained Haitian clinicians.   Sarah welcomes your questions via email (sarahecker123@gmail.com) to find more information on the winter trip with the STAND Haiti Project! Make sure to connect with Sarah on LinkedIn!   Check out the episode with Dr. Justin Dunaway and Dr. Morgan Denny about the STAND Haiti Project here!   Thanks for listening and subscribing to the podcast! Make sure to connect with me on twitter and facebook to stay updated on all of the latest! Show your support for the show by leaving a rating and review on iTunes!   Have a great week and stay Healthy Wealthy and Smart!   Xo Karen   P.S. Do you want to be a stand out podcast guest? Make sure to grab the tools from the FREE eBook on the home page! Check out my latest blog post on The Do's and Don'ts of Social Media!  

On this week’s episode, Dina Behrman joins me to share strategies for healthcare professionals on how to utilize publicity and public relations. Dina is a journalist-turned-publicity coach who is passionate about empowering business owners to get the best kind of publicity for their business to raise their profile, position themselves as an expert, build their brand, find new opportunities, reach new audiences, put their prices up and help more people. In this episode, we discuss: -Why you should start calling yourself an expert -How introverts can break personal barriers and promote their brand -How to pitch to the media and gain your brand access and coverage -Dina’s top tips for attracting more publicity -And much, much more!   The media often selects authority figures who are “experts” on a topic or field. As a healthcare professional, you have expertise and must learn to communicate and represent yourself as an expert. Dina suggests, “The main thing is to start seeing yourself as an expert, because especially if you're a health entrepreneur and you’ve got that expertise in a particular area then you want to be pitching yourself to the press as an expert and as someone who can talk knowledgably about a subject. A lot of people have an issue calling themselves an expert and it’s almost like they need someone to come along and say, ‘Yes, you're an expert’ as opposed to feeling very confident about saying you know what I really know my stuff.”   Sometimes introverts can be preoccupied with their own discomfort to pitch to a journalist. Dina suggests instead focusing on the huge benefits your expertise can provide to so many people. Dina recommends, “Having a bit of a mindset shift and thinking about it from the point of view of coming from a place of service and thinking whatever it is that you're sharing, if it’s your knowledge and your expertise that's going to be helping other people... The people that read that, it’s going to have a huge impact on them it’s going to really help them and the reason for getting that PR and publicity is that you can reach so many more people than you would be able to reach normally. So there is the potential for you to be helping so many more people and you’re doing something really good in the world by getting publicity and sharing your knowledge and your expertise and your experiences.”   Starting your publicity journey doesn’t have to be complicated. Often the very basics of your education are immensely valuable to the public and can start the conversation. “You only need to be a couple of steps ahead of the people you are talking to to be of help to them… Journalists can't possibly know all of the ins and outs of your industry the way that you do and so you're going to know more than they do and you're going to be useful to them… They don't have those years of training and everything that you have. There is so much value you can give even if it seems like it’s the basic level.”   For more information about Dina: Journalist-turned publicity coach Dina Behrman is a PR and publicity expert who works with female entrepreneurs who are struggling to take their business to the next level. She helps them get their business seen and heard in the media so they can share their story and help more people, whilst gaining more followers, raising their prices and making more sales. She has featured as a PR expert in The Guardian, BBC Radio, Huffington Post, Raspberry Magazine, BussinesZone, YFS, Prowess, Women Unlimited, Business Rocks Magazine, amongst others.  Click here to download her media kit. To get in touch, email her on dina@dinabehrman.com or click here to fill out a contact form.   Find Dina on social media: Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn   Make sure to grab her free publicity prep cheat sheet and check out her group program Business Fame School!   Thanks for listening and subscribing to the podcast! Make sure to connect with me on twitter and facebook to stay updated on all of the latest! Show your support for the show by leaving a rating and review on iTunes!   Have a great week and stay Healthy Wealthy and Smart!   Xo Karen   P.S. Do you want to be a stand out podcast guest? Make sure to grab the tools from the FREE eBook on the home page! Check out my latest blog post on The Do's and Don'ts of Social Media!   P.S.S. Check out the inaugural Women in PT Summit here!  Sign up now as space is limited!

Thanks for tuning into the Healthy Wealthy and Smart Podcast! On this week’s episode, Dr. Christian Barton joins me to discuss the running retraining program. Dr. Barton is a physiotherapist in Melbourne, Australia who has published over 40 papers in Sports Medicine, Rehabilitation and Biomechanics journals and he is also an Associate Editor for the British Journal of Sports Medicine. In this episode, we discuss: -Current evidence on the optimal foot strike pattern -Do traditional PT interventions have a place in a running retraining program? -How to configure a physical therapy plan of care for limited office visits -Managing expectations on recovery timeframes for runners -The growth in wearable devices and how to use them in your practice -And much more!   An important aspect of running retraining is educating patients on how they can self-modulate their technique while they run. Dr. Barton states, “When you're doing running retraining, it’s not trying to dictate the way someone runs for an entire run, but it’s giving them options that they can use throughout that run and try things. Often, if they do try these things, they can find a happy ground where they can run pain free again.”   Offering the most value to patients with limited office visits can be challenging. Patient education is integral so you can prioritize exercise rehabilitation and running retraining during your treatment sessions. Dr. Barton believes, “Most runners are incredibly motivated… If you’re giving them value in terms of their running and you’re giving them great guidance with their rehab and great guidance with their running technique and they can see that after a few months, they will probably pay for another couple of sessions to follow up and keep progressing things.”   Managing expectations and setting realistic goals is important for optimal patient satisfaction and outcomes. Dr. Barton stresses, “You have to talk to your patient. It’s about a shared decision process. I don’t think we get to dictate to every patient exactly what they need to do. We need to ask them that question at the beginning—what is the most important thing for you moving forward? Is there a short term goal you really, really want to get to... At the end of the day, it's about patient choice and working with them to their goals.”   The growth in technology allows physical therapists to make better clinical decisions and help with patient buy-in. Dr. Barton states, “[Technology] is just a great facilitator and a great way of measuring things. It’s educating the patient as well. It’s not only your analysis but it’s also your ability to educate the patient on what’s going on.”   For more on Dr. Barton: Dr. Christian Barton is a physiotherapist who graduated with first class Honours from Charles Sturt University in 2005, and completed his PhD focusing on Patellofemoral Pain, Biomechanics and Foot Orthoses in 2010. Dr Barton’s broad research disciplines are biomechanics, running-related injury, knee pathology, tendinopathy, and rehabilitation, with a particular focus on research translation.   Dr. Barton has published over 40 papers in Sports Medicine, Rehabilitation and Biomechanics journals, and he is an Associate Editor for the British Journal of Sports Medicine.   Resources discussed on this show: British Journal of Sports Medicine British Journal of Sports Medicine Facebook British Journal of Sports Medicine Podcast British Journal of Sports Medicine App Conversation with Dr. Claire Hiller Hudl App Kinovea Program Coach's Eye App Garmin Foot Pod La Trobe University Sport and Exercise Medicine Research Centre Twitter La Trobe University Sport and Exercise Medicine Research Centre Blog La Trobe Sport and Exercise Medicine Research Facebook Group Running Physio Twitter   Make sure to follow Dr. Barton on twitter to get exposed to more on the latest research!   Thanks for listening and subscribing to the podcast! Make sure to connect with me on twitter and facebook to stay updated on all of the latest! Show your support for the show by leaving a rating and review on iTunes!   Have a great week and stay Healthy Wealthy and Smart!   Xo Karen   P.S. Do you want to be a stand out podcast guest? Make sure to grab the tools from the FREE eBook on the home page! Check out my latest blog post on The Do's and Don'ts of Social Media!

Happy Labor Day to the Healthy Wealthy and Smart Podcast family! On today’s episode, Amanda Goldman-Petri joins me to discuss how systems can lead to independence and where your business may land on the wealth pyramid. Amanda is the founder of MarketLikeANerd.com and an internationally renowned “Work Smarter, Not Harder” Online Marketing Coach for entrepreneurs who want to maximize their profits while minimizing the amount of time and effort they put into their business. In this episode, we discuss: -Amanda’s life experiences and how she broke from the fee-for-service ceiling -How to create organized systems that delegate tasks properly -What is the wealth pyramid and how to achieve the end stage of wealth -Goals and actionable steps for each stage of the wealth pyramid  -And much, much more!   Fee-for-service businesses like physical therapy have a scalability challenge. Creative solutions are key to working smarter not harder and moving up the wealth pyramid. Amanda recommends to, “Shift from the one-on-one to the leveraged offer because that’s better for long term sustainability and start automating your marketing because sales, while they are great in the short term for fast cash, are manual and time intensive. The more you can automate your marketing going into leveraged offers, the more scalable and sustainable your business is going to be.”   A capable team is integral to gaining more control over your time commitment to your business. From Amanda’s experience, “I really like delegating as much as possible in my business not just because I believe it is the most scalable way to do it but because it frees me up to do those things that I really, really love.”   Understanding each stage of the wealth pyramid allows entrepreneurs to get a sense of how they should be prioritizing their goals. Amanda states, “There are a lot of business owners who get into business because they want to make an impact on the world but they are so consumed with the need for them to pay themselves, the need for them to make money, that they never have that opportunity to feel released enough to focus on how their business can serve a greater purpose. I think ultimately that’s where most business owners would love to be.”   It’s common for business owners to think that hard work is the only way to success and independence however that mindset should only be temporary. Amanda believes, “We become accustomed to this idea that things have to be hard, that you have to sacrifice, that you have to hustle, and business has to be difficult… As long as you work smarter, you can make more money with less effort and it can make your business feel seamless.“   For more on Amanda: Amanda is the founder of MarketLikeANerd.com. She is an internationally renowned “Work Smarter, Not Harder” Online Marketing Coach for entrepreneurs who want to maximize their profits while minimizing the amount of time and effort they put into their business. After overcoming poverty, child abuse, rape, teen pregnancy, and near death, Amanda was able to persevere and create her first $10K month within 4 months at the age of 22. She generated over $150K in her next business within 4 months at the age of 23, and in her first Market Like A Nerd launch she generated over $120K in 90 days while also expanding her business to 19 different countries.   She has helped clients turn $700 into $100K using Facebook ads, $300 into $16K using webinars, and sell out coaching programs completely within 90 days using free Facebook Group marketing strategies. Amanda has featured on major media outlets such as Small Business Trendsetters, ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, The Huffington Post, Worth Magazine, International Business Times (and more) for her unique and nerdy approach to marketing. If you want to discover how to make more money while working less so you can screw hustle, screw sacrifice, and create a financially-free life full of impact and freedom, Amanda is the expert you need to talk to.   Resources discussed on this show: Balanced Entrepreneur Facebook Group Community Webinar: Welcome 50 ideal clients in 90 days    Follow Amanda on Facebook, twitter, and LinkedIn and check out all of the amazing programs on her website Market Like a Nerd!   Thanks for listening and subscribing to the podcast! Make sure to connect with me on twitter and facebook to stay updated on all of the latest! Show your support for the show by leaving a rating and review on iTunes!   Have a great week and stay Healthy Wealthy and Smart!   Xo Karen   P.S. Do you want to be a stand out podcast guest? Make sure to grab the tools from the FREE eBook on the home page! Check out my latest blog po

On this week’s episode of the podcast, I welcome Dr. Evangelos Pappas back onto the show to discuss current research on ACL rehabilitation. Dr. Pappas is a Senior Lecturer within the Discipline of Physiotherapy with expertise in sports medicine and musculoskeletal physiotherapy at the University of Sydney. He has published extensively in journals in sports medicine, musculoskeletal physiotherapy and biomechanics and he has presented his work in more than 50 national and international conferences. Dr. Pappas research passion is to develop programs that effectively prevent lower extremity injuries and identify rehabilitation techniques that provide optimal outcomes for injured athletes. In this episode, we discuss: -Biomechanical deficits that predispose athletes to ACL injury -Treatment interventions and screening assessments for return to sport that reduce the likelihood of re-injury -Training programs on ACL injury prevention -Wearable technology’s impact on future ACL injury statistics -And so much more!   Dr. Pappas is critical of physical therapy interventions that do not address deficits that could predispose the athlete to re-injury. He stresses, “Even though it is relatively easy to rehabilitate somebody after an ACL reconstruction in terms of regaining strength, range of motion, and even some proprioception, and even getting them ready for sports, I would strongly argue we are providing a disservice to this patient if we don't take it a step further and try to identify the biomechanical deficits that would potentially predispose them to an ACL tear and try and rectify those…”   ACL injuries not only affect the athlete at the time of injury and throughout rehabilitation but also may lead to lasting adverse health effects. Dr. Pappas states, “You have an athlete with an ACL tear at age 16 who develops osteoarthritis because that commonly happens within the next 10-15 years… They’re supposed to be in their most productive years and there are not many good choices because they are too young for a total knee replacement and their knee related quality of life is similar to someone who is 70 or 80 years old. We are very passionate about preventing those injuries because once they happen there are things we can do to prevent it from getting worse or getting another injury but just the fact that it happens it can really be a life defining event.“   The FIFA 11 + is a successful injury prevention program because it is incorporates an easy-to-follow dynamic warm-up into the daily practices of athletes. “The athlete does a 10 minute warm-up, they will have to do it either way. They have a choice of doing something that is ineffective like static stretching or they have the choice of doing something that is probably a little bit more fun and also effective… The same exercises that prevent the injuries are also good at making athletes run faster or jump higher and have a competitive advantage over their opponents.”   New research has found that athletes who have deficits in the single hop test still present a year post ACL reconstruction have a higher likelihood of re-injury. Dr. Pappas cautions, “Almost nobody should be returning to sport before 9 months after an ACL reconstruction. The knee will feel okay, especially if they had some allograft with no other side morbidity, but it's the job of the PT to discourage and convince the athlete to not return to sport earlier than 9 months after the ACL reconstruction.”   For more on Dr. Pappas: Professor Evangelos Pappas trained as a physiotherapist in Thessaloniki, Greece before pursuing a Masters in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy at Quinnipiac University and a PhD in Orthopaedic Biomechanics at New York University in the USA. Prior to coming to the University of Sydney, He taught for 11 years at Long Island University-Brooklyn Campus in kinesiology, clinical decision making and musculoskeletal pathology and physiotherapy. His excellence in teaching was recognized by his nomination for the Newton award for excellence in teaching. A/Professor Pappas joined the University of Sydney as a Senior Lecturer in 2013 where he continues to lecture in the areas of musculoskeletal physiotherapy, and particularly as it relates to the upper and lower extremities.   Professor Pappas is also active in musculoskeletal research. His research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health and intramural grants. He has presented his work in more than 50 national and international conferences and he has been interviewed on the radio as an expert on knee injuries. His publications appear in top journals in the fields of physiotherapy, sports medicine and biomechanics. One of his publications received the T. David Sisk award for best review paper from Sports Health; a leading multidisciplinary journal in sports medicine. In addition, A/Professor Pappas has served on the research subcommittee of the awards committee of the American Physical Therapy Association.   Resources discussed in this show: Dance Research Collaborative University of Sydney: Evangelos Pappas FIFA 11 +   Kyritsis, Polyvios, et al. "Likelihood of ACL graft rupture: not meeting six clinical discharge criteria before return to sport is associated with a four times greater risk of rupture." British journal of sports medicine (2016): bjsports-2015. Link: http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2016/05/23/bjsports-2015-095908.abstract   Myer, G. D., Martin, L., Ford, K. R., Paterno, M. V., Schmitt, L. C., Heidt, R. S., ... & Hewett, T. E. (2012). No association of time from surgery with functional deficits in athletes after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction evidence for objective return-to-sport criteria. The American journal of sports medicine, 40(10), 2256-2263.  Pubmed link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22879403   Make sure to follow Dr. Pappas on twitter and facebook! You can reach out to him with your questions via email evangelos.pappas@sydney.edu.au! Listen to Dr. Pappas first discussion on the show here!   Thanks for listening and subscribing to the podcast! Make sure to connect with me on twitter and facebook to stay updated on all of the latest! Show your support for the show by leaving a rating and review on iTunes!   Have a great week and stay Healthy Wealthy and Smart!   Xo Karen   P.S. Do you want to be a stand out podcast guest? Make sure to grab the tools from the FREE eBook on the home page! Check out my latest blog post on The Do's and Don'ts of Social Media!  

On today’s episode, I had the pleasure of welcoming Dr. Richard Severin PT, DPT, CCS back onto the show to address audience questions on pursuing a terminal degree and entering the world of academia. Dr. Severin is a physical therapist currently pursuing his PhD in Rehab Science at the University of Illinois at Chicago with a focus in cardiovascular physiology.   In this episode, we discuss: - What it takes to get accepted into the right PhD program for you including how to find a mentor and develop a competitive advantage -Differences between each terminal degree and their job prospects -Is it possible to manage DPT debt and clinical work while you pursue a PhD? -The changing academic world and growth in the job landscape -And so much more!   The ideal PhD program for you comes down to finding the right mentor. Dr. Severin’s advice is to, “Find someone who does research that you are interested in. The PhD really is mentor driven. Usually if you’re considering going down that road, you have a list of researchers or authors you follow—you kind of know who they are already. So that’s the first step, finding the person. If you have discourse with them, reach out to them. And if not, you're not going to get a negative response from cold emailing and just say, ‘Hey, these are my interests, I would consider applying here, what are your opportunities?’”   Dr. Severin believes that the academic world is allowing for more entrepreneurial pursuits to support your income. He states, “You’ve got to eat what you kill. You’ve got to find ways to find revenue. Historically, patents weren’t something that contributed to rank and tenure and now they are starting to count. Social media is going to be a bigger thing now... Academia is starting to wisen up—which I think is good.”   Before applying to a PhD program, develop research experience to show that you can bring value. Dr. Severin recommends to, “Get a little bit of a taste of what it means to work in a lab before you commit yourself to 3 to 5 years of it. And that will look good on your application. There are usually 1 or 2 spots in most places, and if it’s a good lab with good researchers those are going to be very competitive spots. Sometimes even if it’s a smaller lab, funding is a scarce resource. It gives you a little bit of a taste, gives you an expectation of what you're going to be doing, and it also shows you can do certain things. A lot of times it is what you can contribute to our lab, goes back to those scarce resources, they want to bring in people who are going to contribute.”   Dr. Severin is optimistic about the prospects of researchers and clinicians bridging together to validate clinical practice with evidence. “There is so much [data] out there that if we can find a way to harvest that data, process it, that’s going to be huge for us. When we talk about proving our worth, imagine if we could get all the outcomes from all of the PTs and find out what is going on here, we can really have some strong numbers that can combat different organizations or insurance companies who are trying to take away our reimbursements.”   For more about Dr. Severin: Dr. Severin is a physical therapist and ABPTS certified cardiovascular and pulmonary specialist. He completed his cardiopulmonary residency at the William S Middleton VA Medical Center/University of Wisconsin-Madison which he then followed up with an orthopedic residency at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). Currently he is working on a PhD in Rehab Science at UIC with a focus in cardiovascular physiology. In addition to research, teaching and clinical practice regarding patients with cardiopulmonary diseases, Dr. Severin has a strong interest in developing clinical practice tools for risk assessments for physical therapists in a variety of practice settings. He is an active member within the APTA and serves on the social media committee and Heart Failure Clinical Practice guideline development team for the cardiopulmonary section.   His research interests include: Assessment of cardiovascular risk in orthopedic physical therapy patients, hemodynamic responses to orthopedic rehab, Heart Failure, End Stage Lung Disease, Transplant Rehab, Exercise Physiology, Sport Performance, Peripheral muscle changes with cardiopulmonary and metabolic diseases, Tendinopathy   Resources discussed on this show: List of PhD programs UIC Integrative Physiology Laboratory Twitter Clinical Rehabilitation and Technology Research Certificate Rehab Review Youtube Channel   You can find more from Dr. Severin on twitter, facebook, and his website PT Reviewer!   Thanks for listening and subscribing to the podcast! Make sure to connect with me on twitter and facebook to stay updated on all of the latest! Show your support for the show by leaving a rating and review on iTunes!   Have a great week and stay Healthy Wealthy and Smart!   Xo Karen   P.S. Do you want to be a stand out podcast guest? Make sure to grab the tools from the FREE eBook on the home page! Check out my latest blog post on The Do's and Don'ts of Social Media!