FEATURES student

Throughout 2022, second-year CU Physical Therapy Student, Tori Serna, asked her peers from a variety of backgrounds, “what is your why?” The responses were thoughtful, impactful, and powerful, and demonstrate just how motivated and altruistic our students are.

“My ‘why’ has transformed since I’ve been in the physical therapy program. CU Anschutz implements clinical rotations early within our schooling, which is one of my favorite things about this program. In the summer semester, we learned how to do transfers, manual muscle tests, and wound care. During clinic, I’m able to apply all that I’ve learned in real life scenarios. Aside from clinical rotations being a nice break from lectures, it motivates me. It motivates me to really pay attention in classes, so that I can apply what I’m learning to the patients I will see in my next clinical rotation in November. When I’m feeling burnt out with classes, having a reminder that another clinical rotation is coming up, and knowing that I will be able to interact with real patients, is the only motivation I need.”

- Abigail Castro, Class of 2024

“Self-motivation is important. To work hard for what you want and to be the best version of yourself every day. But as we know, life can get hard. It’s inevitable that some days we’re going to take L’s. We’re human. There are days where all I want to do is stay in my pajamas and not do any work. When those days come and my self-motivation is low, my pursuit to keep going is fueled by my family. My why is my family. Why I get up in the morning. Why I choose to study more times than I choose to watch Netflix. Because of their support, sacrifices, and unconditional love, I believe I can do anything I set my mind to. My mother and I flew here from the Philippines with 2 suitcases of our belongings and nothing else. I was only 6 years old and had no idea what was going on and I could tell from my mom’s eyes that she didn’t either. Neither of us knew how long we’d be staying. Fast forward to today and here I am, the first in my family to pursue a doctorate degree in a field that drives my academic mind and fulfills my longing to help others. I watched my parents miraculously uproot their life as they knew it, to provide my siblings and I a brighter future here in America. They have worked endlessly to take care of me and all the dreams I’ve chased. My family is my why because if they can do everything they’ve done, I can do the work too. They’re my inspiration.”

- Angela Delos Santos, Class of 2024

“I really like people and I want to help people in any way possible. For me, physical therapy is different from other healthcare professions. I’ve heard from patients, family members, and friends that their physical therapists are the most personable people they’ve met, and they tend to have good rapport with their patients. Having this relationship with your patients will have implications on the quality of service we’re able to provide. I want to be able to help my patients reach the goals they have set for themselves. Not just health wise, but just goals they have in general. I want to help people see the benefits of physical therapy so they can utilize those benefits, especially considering how underutilized physical therapy is.”

- Alexandra Fields, Class of 2023

“Growing up in what I consider to be a very non-traditional, rural city of low socioeconomic status, I was heartbroken by not being able to see reflections of myself or family within the people I looked up to. I struggled to find professionals who shared attributes of Mexican culture or Spanish as their first language. My ‘why’ lies in helping to improve representation for Hispanics who wish to seek a doctoral degree. Representation matters and I would like to be the change I wish I saw when I was younger. I hope to be a mirror image for people to look up to, particularly those aspiring medical professionals coming from a similar background as I had. As representation numbers improve, I hope to see this gap diminish.”

- Javier Gonzalez Plazola, Class of 2022

“My why is to help and educate people on the things that they didn’t know that they could do. This is my favorite part of physical therapy. I enjoy giving patients exercises they feel they don’t know how to do and watching them see in real time that they can not only do those very exercises, but also the extent in which the exercises work.”

- Adriana Maldonado, Class of 2022

“When thinking of my ‘why,’ it’s simple; I want to make an impact on someone’s life. I was raised to leave the world a better place than the way I found it and with a profession like physical therapy, I’m able to do that. People need healthcare but they also deserve to be provided support in many other facets of life as well. Whether big or small, physical therapy can impact more than just the health of an individual. Knowing I can make a difference is what motivates me to continue doing what I’m doing.”

- Ryan Michael, Class of 2023

“Growing up here in Denver, I always felt lesser than, especially in regard to my education. My ‘why’ is to show people who look like me that you can achieve whatever you want to achieve, and although it’s going to be a journey, there are resources in place to help you along the way. I hope to be an inspiration to someone and as a product of my community, I’m always willing to give back and take that extra step to help someone navigate this time in the same way I was helped.”

- Orlando Mosley, Class of 2022

“It’s difficult to try and come up with one simple statement because my ‘why’ is constantly developing and transforming into something bigger. Simply put, I want to make sure my choice of work is important and makes a difference in my life, my patients, and the community I serve. As a patient, I felt like my physical therapists did so much to lift me up and change my life. Since being a PT aide and a DPT student, I’ve been able to treat patients and realize that they have the power to positively influence and improve my life beyond the capacity that I can change theirs. The reward I feel from healing and helping patients is better than anything else I could ever imagine. As a person of color, I strive to be able to connect with my patients while sharpening my skill set to help individuals understand what our bodies can achieve. For this reason, I am motivated to persist beyond any obstacle in order to give the community I serve the power to live their lives how they want; free of pain and full of potential.”

- Janae Mudge, Class of 2023

“At the age of 16, both my father and I tore the ligaments in our knees playing the sport we loved, soccer. Aside from that, our injury and the recovery process was very different due to multiple factors. I was born and raised in America and had access to Physical Therapy and was able to return to soccer within 6 months. My father was new to the country, still learning English, on Medicaid, and had never navigated the US healthcare system to this level before. Today, my heart aches when he attempts to stand from the dinner table with a stiff knee. He has become my visual reminder that the challenges he experienced in healthcare are not unique to the many other stories of refugees, immigrants, and non-English speaking Americans. I aspire to be an expert clinician, one who advocates for these patients and other Physical Therapists through my future contributions to science and research.”

- Melissa Tran, Class of 2022