President’s Message
(May 6, 2020)
Dear Members:
Like many Hoosiers, I listened to the Governor’s address on Friday, May 1, in order to be able to better understand what the next few weeks and months will be like in Indiana as the shelter in place order is gradually rolled back. What the Governor shared in his comments on Friday is reflected in EO 20-26. In addition, last week, the Governor renewed EO 20-25, the public health emergency declaration, extending it for 30 days, now from May 5 – June 5. This means that physical therapists can continue to provide telemedicine under EO 20-13 until this date. Thank you to those who have completed the form indicating you are providing telemedicine. This list is on the APTA Indiana website, and it is being updated weekly. To sign up, click HERE.
I appreciate that COVID-19 has impacted physical therapists, physical therapist assistants and students of physical therapy in many personal and professional ways. The mission of APTA Indiana is to Maximize the lifelong health, function, and well-being of the people of Indiana and advance the practice of physical therapy through advocacy, collaboration and education. We can only accomplish this when we are healthy, and when we are working in an optimal capacity. As the APTA Indiana Board of Directors plans to meet this coming Saturday, what would be of value to us is to understand the impact COVID-19 is having on the physical therapy workforce in Indiana. If you are a physical therapist or physical therapist assistant, please consider taking 4 minutes to answer this short survey. For students of physical therapy, please complete this survey.
Looking ahead, and considering how physical therapy can continue to be a key element in the recovery of those who were affected by COVID-19, I would encourage you to consider attending some, or all, of our APTA Indiana Spring Meeting on May 9. Here is the schedule:
9:00 – 11:00 am: Virtual Board Meeting
11:00 am – 12:00 pm: Breakout Sessions with Committees, District Leadership, Delegation
12:00 – 1:00 pm: Virtual Town Hall – An Interactive Discussion Between Leadership and Members
If you have considered getting involved with APTA Indiana, but have been unsure about what this entails, the session from 11:00 am – 12:00 pm will provide you will a chance to talk with many of our committee chairs. The Virtual Town Hall is a time for questions, submitted in advance or during the meeting, to be answered. Register for a portion of or all of the Spring Meeting HERE.
I want to finish by giving a huge thanks to APTA Members, Steven Kinney, PT, DPT, Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy and Janet Delong, PT, DPT, MSW, MHS who co-taught this past Saturday’s webinar: Using the Biopsychosocial Model to Meet the Challenges of Persistent Pain. All the proceeds from this great learning experience went to the APTA Indiana PAC.
Thank you again to all of you out there who are doing remarkable things which are reflecting so positively on our physical therapy profession.
Emily
Emily Slaven, PT, PhD, Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy President, APTA Indiana