About the Department of Physical Therapy

Department of Physical Therapy Mission Statement

To educate DPT students to practice autonomously within evolving, complex, and diverse healthcare environments. The program will prepare students to be movement specialists who are collaborative, lifelong learners who apply evidence to optimize health outcomes and function.

Program Values

Magis

Magis is Latin for ‘more.’ Saint Joseph’s DPT program encourages and supports students to strive for excellence, going beyond what is expected for themselves and others. We value and promote lifelong learning.

Cura personalis

Cura personalis is Latin for ‘care for the whole person.’ Our program is committed to respecting diversity, individual differences, cultural backgrounds and identity as we educate, empower, and care for our students, faculty, and staff. This experience will prepare our graduates to care for the whole person as they seek to optimize movement and function in each of their patients.

Department of Physical Therapy Vision

The Saint Joseph’s University’s DPT program will be recognized for excellence in physical therapy education. Our graduates will be pursued because they are compassionate healthcare providers, critical thinkers, and skilled practitioners who optimize human movement to the betterment of a diverse society.

The Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), 3030 Potomac Ave., Suite 100, Alexandria, Virginia 22305-3085; telephone: 703-706-3245; email: accreditation@apta.org; website: www.capteonline.org. If you need to contact the program/institution directly, please call 215.596.8677 or email srobinson@sju.edu.

Information for the Academic Catalog for Physical Therapy can be found in Saint Joseph's Academic Catalog. Please contact us if you have any questions about the program curriculum, prerequisite courses and other requirements.

Information and Resources

• Department of Physical Therapy Student Handbook/Policy & Procedure Manual
• Department of Physical Therapy Clinical Education Policy & Procedure Manual

Physical therapists must be licensed to practice, and must pass the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) for physical therapists and physical therapist assistants, which is administered by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy (http://www.fsbpt.org/). This exam does not need to be taken again for licensure transfer to another state, provided that one's score satisfies the scores for each individual state in which one practiced. The only requirement to take the examination is graduation from a Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education-accredited program, such as the University's DPT program.

For Saint Joseph’s graduates who responded to the alumni survey, 100% were employed within one year of passing the licensure examination (2022-2023).

The 2-year graduation rate is 95.8% (2022-2023).

The two-year ultimate pass rate on the national licensure examination for the DPT classes of 2022-2023 is 92.8%. The first-time pass rate for the DPT class of 2023 was 78.3%. To access further details on pass rates, visit this link on the FSBPT website.

The following are the technical standards that apply to all clinical training students in Saint Joseph’s Doctor of Physical Therapy program.

Technical standards are the non-academic admission criteria that are essential to participation in the University’s programs. These standards are categorized into the following areas: [1] communication; [2] cognition; [3] behavioral/professionalism; and [4] psychomotor skills. Applicants and students must have and maintain the ability to perform or meet these essential tasks, skills and standards with or without reasonable accommodations. By applying to and accepting admission to Saint Joseph’s University, you acknowledge that you have read and understand the Technical Standards and believe that you have the ability to meet them, with or without reasonable accommodations.

Saint Joseph’s University recognizes that a diverse campus community is essential to enriching intellectual exchanges and enhancing cultural understanding. The University values equality of opportunity, mutual respect, and an appreciation of diversity. As part of this commitment, the University provides reasonable accommodations to qualified students with disabilities.¹ The University is not required to waive these essential standards, because that would be a fundamental alteration of the nature of these programs. Please refer to the Disability Services Policy for more information.

Students with disabilities who believe they require an accommodation(s) to either meet these Technical Standards, to fully access the admissions process and/or to participate in and benefit from the program curriculum and other programs and services of Saint Joseph’s, are encouraged to contact Student Disability Services to participate in a confidential consultation. Accommodations are not retroactive; therefore, students are encouraged to contact the SDS as early as possible to allow for adequate time to consider and implement any approved accommodations.

Communication

Students must be able to:

1. Communicate professionally, effectively, and sensitively with patients and all members of the healthcare team, both in person and in written form, that reflect professional values and those of the University.
2. Retain, recall, and deliver information in an efficient and timely manner.
3. Accurately share and record information from patients’ records, through history taking, and through communications with the healthcare team.
4. Participate in class discussions/group projects/practice labs for the purpose of delivery and receipt of scientific/medical information.
5. Identify and describe changes in affect, including facial expression, mood, emotions, activity, and posture, of others in the classroom and clinic, and respond appropriately.
6. Communicate effectively with others from varied social, emotional, cultural, and intellectual backgrounds.
7. Explain to other healthcare professionals, patients, and/or caregivers the reason(s) for treatment, preventative measures, disease process, monitoring plans, and need for referral.
8. Recognize and promptly respond to emotional communications (e.g., sadness, worry, agitation, pain).

Cognition

Students must be able to:

1. Analyze, interpret, and integrate information during patient examinations and throughout patient management to make clinical decisions.
2.  Retrieve, recall, retain, and apply medical, scientific, and professional information and literature in the classroom and in clinical experiences.
3.  Utilize effective clinical judgment and problem-solving skills to address difficulties in a timely manner within all learning environments.
4.  Multi-task, prioritize, and perform tasks in an accurate, logical, and sequential manner.
5.  Accurately perform scientific measurements and calculations in clinical environments.
6.  Demonstrate the ability to learn effectively through a variety of modalities including, but not limited to, classroom instruction, remote learning, asynchronous learning, small group discussions, laboratory experiences, individual study, and preparation and presentation of written and oral reports.
7.  Acknowledge limitations of knowledge and/or performance in order to obtain appropriate supports and provide optimal patient care.

Behavioral/Professionalism

Students must be able to:

1.  Exercise professional judgment to maintain patient safety and well-being.
2.  Display professional behavior, including, but not limited to, punctuality, dependability, organization, and responsibility.
3.  Self-manage to adapt to rapidly changing environments.
4. Respond promptly and professionally to stressful situations.
5.  Display integrity, interpersonal skills, motivation, compassion, and concern for others.
6.  Self-reflect, be receptive to feedback, and modify behavior to improve skills, patient-client relationships, and patient/client outcomes.
7.  Establish and maintain mature, sensitive, effective relationships with patients, families, students, faculty, staff, preceptors/supervisors, and other professionals under all circumstances.
8.  Demonstrate appropriate assertiveness, delegate responsibilities, and function as part of a multidisciplinary healthcare team.
9.  Identify and take responsibility for one’s own actions and decisions, inclusive of seeking supervision and/or consultation in a timely manner.
10.  Demonstrate respect for differences in cultures, experiences, identities, values, and ethics among others.
11.  Recognize and respond appropriately and in a timely manner to potentially hazardous situations, including those that are life-threatening.
12.  Respect the confidential relationship between healthcare practitioner and patient and not violate the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) or other applicable confidentiality obligations.
13.  Abide by both the Saint Joseph’s Code of Conduct² and the professional standards of practice in accordance to the respective Oaths of Healthcare Professionals.
14.  Meet workloads that may be physically, emotionally, and mentally taxing, while functioning efficiently and effectively.
15.  Utilize sound reasoning and practice physical therapy in an ethical manner.

Psychomotor/Motor

Students must be able to:

1.  Possess psychomotor skills necessary to provide or assist in holistic physical therapy care and perform or assist with procedures and treatments.
2.  Use technology to accurately record information and convey critical health-related documentation.
3.  Perform a variety of exertional activities during the working period with occasional rest breaks.
4.  Elicit patient information through palpation, auscultation, and perform emergency procedures such as CPR in clinical settings.
5.  Possess sufficient gross motor abilities and manual dexterity, or functional equivalent, to proficiently demonstrate all program-specific competencies, including, but not limited to:
   1. Safely and effectively facilitating movement of the patient’s body during transfers, functional mobility training, positioning, examinations and therapeutic interventions.
   2. Performing systems reviews, including:
      1. the cardiovascular/pulmonary system through the assessment of blood pressure, heart rate, respiration rate, and edema
      2. the integumentary system through the gross assessment of skin color, turgor, integrity, and the presence of scar
      3. the musculoskeletal system through the gross assessment of range of motion, strength, symmetry, height, and weight
      4. the neuromuscular system through the general assessment of gross coordinated movement and motor function
      5. the gross assessment of communication ability, affect, cognition, language, and learning style, consciousness, orientation, and expected behavioral/emotional responses.
   3. Selecting, and competently administering tests and measures appropriate to the patient’s age, diagnosis and health status. Tests may include, but are not limited to, those that assess:
      1. Aerobic Capacity/Endurance
      2. Anthropometric Characteristics
      3. Assistive Technology
      4. Balance
      5. Circulation (Arterial, Venous, Lymphatic)
      6. Self-Care and Civic, Community, Domestic, Education, Social and Work Life
      7. Cranial and Peripheral Nerve Integrity
      8. Environmental Factors
      9. Gait
      10. Integumentary Integrity
          • Joint Integrity and Mobility
          • Mental Functions
          • Mobility (including Locomotion)
          • Motor Function
          • Muscle Performance (including Strength, Power, Endurance, and Length)
          • Neuromotor Development and Sensory Processing
          • Pain
          • Posture
          • Range of Motion
          • Reflex Integrity
          • Sensory Integrity
          • Skeletal Integrity
          • Ventilation and Respiration or Gas Exchange
   4. Competently and safely perform physical therapy interventions to achieve patient/client goals and outcomes. Interventions include:

• Airway Clearance Techniques
• Assistive Technology: Prescription, Application, and, as appropriate, Fabrication or Modification
• Biophysical Agents
• Functional Training in Self-Care and in Domestic, Education, Work, Community, Social, and Civic Life
• Integumentary Repair and Protection
• Manual Therapy Techniques (including mobilization/manipulation thrust and nonthrust techniques)
• Motor Function Training (balance, gait, etc.)
• Patient/Client education
• Therapeutic Exercise

References:

¹ Saint Joseph’s Disability Services Policy
² Saint Joseph’s Code of Conduct

Please print and sign the Signature Form to indicate you have read and understand the above information.

The costs reflected in this document are for students who enter the professional phase of the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program in the summer of 2023. Program related costs, and other associated expenses are highly variable, depending on location of clinical rotation sites.

The annual Patricia Leahy Memorial Lecture is named after Patricia (Patti) Leahy, MS, PT, NCS, who died on October 9, 1995, of breast cancer at the age of 39. She was an assistant professor in the Department of Physical Therapy at University of the Sciences in Philadelphia from 1987 to 1995. The lecture serves to raise money for the Patricia Leahy Memorial Lecture scholarship fund, which financially assists PT students during clinical education, and to honor the memory of Professor Leahy.

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