This workshop is designed for 4 Contact Hours, meeting the Minnesota BPT professional ethics training requirements.
Course Summary
As PTAs, we work under the direction and supervision of a physical therapist. As such, many PTAs don’t feel called to be or act as a “leader”. In 2015, however, the APTA’s Leadership Development Committee clearly stated that leadership is the work of ALL PTs, PTAs, and students. There are many different definitions and perceptions of leadership.
In this course, several frameworks of leadership will be presented and the work of former St. Catherine University faculty member, Julie Belle White-Newman, who developed a framework describing the 3 E’s of leadership will specifically be used to analyze our work as leaders. White-Newman suggested that leaders must be effective, ethical, and enduring.
During part 1 of this course, participants will have an opportunity to identify leadership behaviors that contribute to effectiveness as a leader and describe how those behaviors fit into daily work with patients, as members of an organization, and the profession of physical therapy. Often overlooked is what is needed to endure as a leader. The work of Brene Brown on whole-heartedness and vulnerability will be used to discuss strategies for enduring as a leader and avoiding burnout.
During the second half of the course, participants will focus on tools to enhance their ability to be an ethical leader. Participants will use APTA Core Documents and the RIPS model to identify ethical issues and process through various courses of action. Participants will also have an opportunity to discuss the experience of moral distress, or dissonance between what we, as individual clinicians, believe to be right and what society or the current healthcare system will support. Ongoing moral distress can lead to stress, anxiety, and burnout. During the 53rd Mary McMillan Lecture, Dr. Laura Lee Swisher, PT, MDiv, PhD., FAPTA advocates for creating “moral space” for reflection and discussion to proactively reflect, discuss, and address ethical issues within our profession. Discussion of ethical issues with others is one of the best strategies for improving skills in addressing ethical issues. Through facilitated small group discussions, participants will have an opportunity to create time and a “moral space” to have open dialogue about moral distress in the workplace.
Presenter
Jessica Scholl, PTA, EdD is an associate professor and director of clinical education for the PTA program at St. Catherine University. Jessica received her AAS degree from Anoka Hennepin Technical College in 2001 as a physical therapist assistant, both her BS in Healthcare Management (2010) and MA in Organizational Leadership (2015) from St. Catherine University, and an EdD in Higher Education Leadership from Bethel University in 2023.
Her clinical background is primarily in outpatient orthopedics but she has also worked in the inpatient rehab / skilled nursing setting. Jessica has been active in the APTA holding elected offices and appointed positions at the state and national level including MN PTA SIG chair, MN PTA Caucus Rep, member, MNPTA Board of Directors, appointed member of the APTA Leadership Development Committee, and NPTE-PTA Standard Setting Task Force.
Jessica’s scholarly agenda has focused on leadership, effective intraprofessional teaming, and an ecological approach to health and wellbeing. She has co-authored several peer-reviewed articles, presents regularly locally and at APTA national conferences on various topics, including intraprofessional teaming and ethics.
Investment
$125 - Student Registrations after September 15, 2025
$175 - Professional Registrations after September 15, 2025
