JANUARY 2023
IT’S ABOUT THE PEOPLE... About a month ago, I was invited to tour the Quinnipiac University North Haven Campus. This impressive campus houses the Law School and The Center for Medicine, Nursing, and Heath Sciences. I’m somewhat familiar with the facilities, as I have served on the Quinnipiac University (QU) Physical Therapy Professional Advisory Board for the last few years. I recently agreed to continue to serve for an additional three years.
IN THIS ISSUE The breadth and depth of PTSMC’s relationships is further enhanced by our clinicians who have taught in the past, currently teach or volunteer at our local universities. These teaching roles forge relationships with students who may one day join our PTSMC family. Our current and most recent instructors and volunteers include:
UHART
Channing Harwood (Plainville)
The tour was in advance of an Advisory Board meeting and was followed by a “meet and greet” with many of the full-time clinical faculty in the DPT program. It was a nice opportunity to reconnect with some people I have known for years as well as be introduced to others I didn’t know.
QU
On this visit, a few things hit home for me.
Mike McGowan (Windsor)
First, I graduated from Quinnipiac when it was a small college at the edge of Sleeping Giant State Park. The North Haven Campus didn’t even exist yet. Second, the experience of attending QU as a DPT student is completely and totally different than anything I was exposed to. The campus and curriculum are worlds away from “back in the day.” Third, this visit reinforced how critical it is for PTSMC and our people to establish and grow relationships with universities educating our profession. The effort is intentional and getting better year after year. One of the bright spots is our Student Program currently led by Juliann Chacko, PT, DPT, OCS, CMT, Assistant Director in Orange. In 2022, PTSMC hosted 32 DPT students from 14 different schools. We also provided Initial Clinical Experiences (ICE) to 60 QU candidates, 16 Sacred Heart University (SHU) candidates and 2 University of Hartford (UHART) candidates. I am very grateful to our clinicians who step up as Clinical Instructors. Your willingness to give back to our profession is outstanding and demonstrates your personal and professional growth.
CONGRATS TO UGLY SWEATER CONTEST WINNERS... WALLINGFORD! Check out the rest of the Ugly Sweater photos on Page 10.
Michelle Kijewski (Wallingford) Russell Woodman (New Haven) Zack Currie (Guilford)
Springfield College
Clinician’s Corner by Mike Stofko, Shelton Physical Therapist Oncology Patients Student Program Year in Review
SHU
Congrats to Recent DOCS Graduates!
EQUIPT (QU’s Student-Run Pro-Bono Clinic)
HR Buzz 2022 W2s Update Your Information 2023 PTSMC Holidays & Holiday Time Off Policy 2023 Three Payroll Months 2023 Mileage Rate Open Enrollment Clinical Continued Education Policy Reminders
Lucas Ferreira (Fairfield) Andrew Kalach (Fairfield) Mario Paredes (Orange) Rebecca Petrosino (Fairfield)
Meghan Blanusa (Naugatuck) Mike Stofko (Shelton)
Employee Spotlight Laura Nicklis, Avon Physical Therapist
I apologize for missing anyone! Please reach out to me if I did.
Techy Tips: Protect Your Privacy By Dave Lawrence Recently, PTSMC sponsored and attended QU’s Katherine Harris White Coat Ceremony. We also had booths at the CTAPTA conference and career DEI: DEI and Employee Engagement fairs at UHART and QU. Thanks to UHart alum Matt Baronowski and Calendar - Coming Soon! our HR Team members Sandra Boccialetti and Karen Havlicek for By Marilex Santiago attending these events. Ugly Sweaters & Food Drive Recap As I consider the people involved and the relationships forged, I think about how many ways these efforts speak to our mission: Improving the quality of people’s lives by providing: • Unmatched Experiences “The front desk staff are always helpful and kind. • Clinical Excellence The PT's are knowledgeable and caring and have • Lifelong Relationships your body goals in mind when treating you. I have the utmost confidence in their ability to get my knee back in gear!” - New London Thanks,
StriveHub Fab 5
Alan
Patient Trends
“Amazing results due to good communication with the therapist and her knowledge. She always asked how I felt and how I was doing (functionally), then proceeded to review or modify existing exercises and/or add new exercises. I was extremely pleased and impressed with her ability to modify (break down/task analyze) exercises to reach my end goal which was ROM without strain or pain!” - Windsor “My therapist has me doing exercises that provide immediate results and improvements to my restricted range of motion, post-surgery. I highly recommend Michael Stofko.” - Shelton “Staff is amazing and very professional. My hand was in a lot of pain for more than 5 months and after my third visit I felt significantly better. Thank you Jeff (Hoerst) for all the improvement you’ve helped me make” - Glastonbury “It's a team atmosphere with the patient's success as the ultimate goal. I found them all helpful, making sure your positioning was correct to help ensure we got the most out our time. I had Dan (Pagliuca) who was exceptional, non judgemental, encouraging and knowledgeable.” - New Milford