Macayla Greiner

Daily Journal Assignment

WCPT Geneva

Journal #1: Friday

Today was full of more site seeing and the kick off of the WCPT Congress. First thing in

the morning, we traveled to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), where we

were able to tour the museum and hear three lectures pertaining to different aspects. The first

lecture was on roles and responsibilities of the ICRC, which was extremely interesting to hear as

I was not sure on many of their roles specifically. Importantly, we learned physical therapy’s

role within the ICRC and the potential risks that they face daily. Taking part in therapy in this

environment seemed extremely rewarding, however, was also very intense. The last lecture we

heard was on warfare laws and legal targets. This lecture was particularly interesting to me

because it is an aspect that I never seem to consider. The presenter did a really great job of

giving scenarios and hearing our thought processes with each situation prior to explaining how

the laws are incorporated. Some of the scenarios were extremely difficult for me to stomach, as

they included taking the lives of children if they present themselves as a legal target. Although

some of this information was difficult to learn about, it is real and occurring in our world.

Therefore, it is important to acknowledge and worth understanding.

Later that day, we attended the opening ceremony of the congress. This event brought

so many overwhelming positive thoughts about our profession. It was amazing to see how

many therapists united for this event all with the common passion for physical therapy. On my

way to the opening event, I met a physical therapist from Jordan. He was presenting his

research on ACL’s at the congress. With this interaction, I was able to learn much about his
country’s culture and his practice as a physical therapist. I learned that the number of available

programs within this country for Physical therapy is only a handful, with not many practicing

therapists. With this interaction, I was also able to practice my professional communication as

we talked about his research on ACL’s. It was extremely interesting to be able to communicate

with practicing therapists on the professional level, as I am still learning as a student. This initial

practice in professional communication, in this prestigious setting, is one that will benefit me

and my future as a developing professional.

The opening ceremony was truly inspiring, and I developed an immediate respect and

liking for the president, Emma Stokes. Through her speech, she really got the crowd excited for

all of the interactions and learning that was to come the next few days. It is nice to realize that I

am at the point in my education where I am becoming extremely excited about practicing and

learning about all of the available knowledge in the profession. This really left me with great

excitement for the weekend.

While touring the museum at the ICRC, there was a section of information about the

prisoners held captive throughout the war. Within the thousands of boxes labeled with last

names, I found two boxes with my last name on them. This came as a huge surprise to me, as I

was not even searching for my name, but came across them by chance in two different

locations. Being in a different country for the first time, I felt an instant connection. This made

me come to the realization how much the world is, and has been, connected through all of

these events and organizations. Sometimes it is easy to forget the connection we have to other

countries, and easy to get wrapped up and focused on what is going on in isolation here in the

United States. However, something as simple as seeing this was a reminder how closely we are
connected. Additionally, after witnessing this, I talked to my family and did some research on

my ancestor’s history around that time, and was able to learn more about my family’s history.

Therefore, I was able to find insight into my personal history through observations at the

museum.
Journal #2: Saturday

Today was the first day of the congress, and we started the day off with the APTA

breakfast. At the breakfast, I was able to meet and converse with several physical therapists

and students of all different backgrounds and ages. One of the students I met went to school in

California and had just graduated. She was planning her move to Switzerland to become a

practicing PT in this country. By speaking with her, I was able to become enlightened to the

process in which she must take to transfer from the United States to Switzerland as a practicing

therapist. This was very interesting to hear, as I have only heard about transferring between

states in our country, and was not aware of the process of transferring from country to country.

Another student I met was one that just graduated from Texas. In talking to both of these

students about their program and education, it was interesting to see the similarities in the

layout of the programs and curriculum to our program.

Additionally, at the breakfast I met a physical therapist with an extremely interesting

background. Prior to becoming a therapist, her career was a professional dancer. With her

dancing background, she soon became interested in the field of physical therapy on

performance. Since becoming a physical therapist, she has practiced in a variety of different

settings within a short period of time, trying to find her passion. Currently, she is an advocate in

using her skills of dancing for the treatment of patients with Parkinson’s disease and those

recovering from a stroke. I really admired this individual’s ability to take her background and

previous passions and implement them into the profession and her treatment! With my

background in athletics and dance, I was inspired to hopefully find ways to implement my

passions into treatment with patients as well after hearing her story.
 The first session that I attended today was a seminar on exercise in children with Down’s

Syndrome. I chose this particular session because I have experience working with children with

disabilities and hold some interest in working in pediatrics in the future. I really liked the way

the session was set up, and was very informative with five different speakers on different

aspects of the topic. Some of the main factors that were touched on were the importance of

tummy time (90 minutes a day) and progressing to back time with alternating kicking activities

to imitate stepping. Another interesting point that was covered with this population, was the

usefulness of high-intensity exercise. It was explained that, in working with children with

disabilities, therapists are often afraid to overwork them. However, they showed extensive

benefits in increasing that intensity and still ensuring the safety of the patient throughout the

activities. Although I have considered it many times, this session provided me with greater

insight in my personal interest in working with this population in the future, which makes me

excited to see where my career path takes me after graduation.

The next session I attended was on orthopedics. Multiple different researchers

presented on the unnecessary surgical, medical, and diagnostic procedures that are being

performed with patients today. One specifically, was on the need of imaging for individuals with

frozen shoulder. The research showed that only two cases out of several hundred showed

significant findings with the imaging, and the other cases did not need the imaging that was

performed. Therefore, the take home message was to really utilize our clinical judgement and

patient education when dealing with imaging. The researcher emphasized that, as

professionals, if we are able to use our judgement and consider if imaging is truly necessary or

not, we will be able to decrease the overall cost of medical services and reduce exposure of
patients to radiation. This is a point that I plan to take with me professionally as I move out into

the clinic. I definitely support more conservative treatment options if warranted, and agree

with this session and the need for physical therapists to take part in supporting this.
Journal #3: Sunday

Today was the second day of the conference and the day of my clinical site visit. One of

the sessions that was extremely interesting was on Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson’s Disease.

One of the researchers presented the finding that, in individuals with Multiple Sclerosis,

exercise programs in combination with stem cell therapy showed a significant increase in

balance and decreased fear of falling compared to either of the interventions alone. This was

extremely interesting to me, as I worked with several patients with Multiple Sclerosis while on

my first clinical rotation. Another research in this session looked at individuals with Parkinson’s

disease. This study showed that the nine-peg hole test correlated with the severity of motor

symptoms, and the dominant hand performance in the test can predict the individual’s level of

independence. This was also extremely interesting to me because I have used this test with

many patients in the past with various disorders. Additionally, I work with many individuals with

Parkinson’s disease on a regular basis through our MOVE! program. These findings are ones

that I will definitely keep in mind as I work with patients on my inpatient rehab clinical rotation

this upcoming year.

Thus far, my favorite part of the trip has been visiting the clinical site. The clinic we went

to was called “La Tour Medical Group” and it is a clinic that works with the Swiss Olympians.

This clinic exists in the same building as many other professionals such as physicians and

surgeons. The therapist that was providing the tour explained the benefit of proximity between

the health care professionals with the same patients. He explained how much the close

proximity aided in their ability to communicate and bounce ideas off of one another, which he

claims has led to great success. One aspect of the clinic that I found extremely cool was the
extent of their outdoor facility. They had two different areas that they would take patients out

to during sessions. One of them was full of different uneven surfaces and obstacles that

individuals often experience throughout the community in order to test the individuals on their

function. The other outdoor section was devoted to the high-level athletes that they work with.

In this area, they allowed these athletes to slowly progress back into sports-related activities

and practice task-specific movements.

While on the tour, I met a physical therapist from Jamaica. She described the clinic in

which she worked at, and the limitations of equipment availability that they face daily. This

therapist was constantly taking pictures and videos throughout the tour to bring back home to

her country to show others the advancements in technology that Switzerland has experienced.

Hearing what she faces on a daily basis in the clinic was definitely an eye opener for me.

Although our country has many faults, we are very fortunate for the advancements and abilities

that we are blessed with in the medical field.

When I entered the program two years ago, I came in with a strong desire to work in

orthopedics. However, after experiencing both the orthopedic block and neuro block of the

program, I saw a shift of my passion to working in neurology. I found that a lot of the neuro

material came naturally to me, and I really enjoyed working with these patients throughout

MOVE! and PT-CONECT. However, after seeing this high-level athletic clinic, it reintroduced me

to my initial desire for orthopedics. With an extensive background in sports, and personal

experience in rehabilitation of sports injuries, I felt that this type of clinic is somewhere I have

dreamed of working at since I was young. Therefore, this clinical site visit really allowed me
insight into my true passions, made me become more open-minded about where the future

may take me in my career, and reminded me of why I fell in love with the profession initially.
Journal #4: Monday

This morning started with a networking session that brought students and new

graduates together to communicate about advocating for the profession and exchange

experiences with one another. There were about twenty-five students and new graduates from

about ten different countries that attended the session. This session was extremely rewarding,

as I was able to interact with students that are just like me, in programs from all around the

world. It was amazing to see the similarities and differences of not only our learning

experiences, but the practice of physical therapy in different countries. For example, I learned

that in some other countries, they still do not have the freedom to create the plan of care for

patients. Instead, they take specific orders from the physician on the patient’s plan of care and

what the sessions should include. The leaders of the networking session also spoke to us about

the WCPT Future Network and all that they hope to accomplish. Most of us students at the

session did not know this was a section of the WCPT, so it was really nice to hear about all that

they are creating in hopes to engage more new graduates in the WCPT. Overall, this networking

session was great in expanding my cultural knowledge of physical therapy. Importantly, this

session helped me to grow professionally, as I learned new ways to advocate for the profession

on a world level.

One of the sessions that I attended on the final day of the conference was on

osteoarthritis. This session was particularly interesting to me due to the prevalence of

osteoarthritis in my family. I have seen how limiting it can be to an individual’s daily life, and am

very interested in hearing different ways to improve symptoms. One presenter on the topic

discussed the importance of implementing psychological training with individuals with OA.
Examples of techniques include relaxation, active rest cycles, pleasant imagery and the use of

distraction. Another presenter enlightened us on a new program that has been started for

individuals with osteoarthritis called GLAD. The program includes education and exercises for

those living with osteoarthritis, and is used in a group therapy format. This was originally

created in Denmark, but other countries, such as Canada, have also adopted the program. As I

am involved with MOVE! here at Central Michigan, I have grown to love and appreciate the

place for group therapy classes. Hearing about this program really got me excited about all the

new possibilities being created for chronic diseases. Group therapy is a great way to not only

challenge individuals physically, but also help to motivate them and aide in their overall well-

being. This session provided me with personal insight on how much excitement and enjoy

group fitness classes in physical therapy bring to me, and I hope to be able to participate in

similar interventions in my future career.

This evening included our final dinner as a group before all flying back to the States.

With the conclusion of the trip, I have been reflecting on the trip as a whole and all I was

fortunate enough to experience. Through all of the Congress sessions, the clinical site visit, the

research posters, the networking opportunities, and witnessing new physical therapy

equipment that therapists are utilizing outside of the U.S., I have truly gained so much insight

culturally, professionally and personally in so many ways. I am so grateful that I was able to

experience this Congress so early in my developing career, and more importantly, I am so

thankful to have experienced it with such a great group of people who share my level of

passion. Although it may be difficult once the real-world sets in and I have a full-time job, I

really hope to attend another WCPT Congress in the future. Until then, I have learned of
multiple different ways that I can continue to be involved and advocate for my profession, and I

look forward to utilizing that as much as I possibly can.