Heartland’s physical therapist assistant program ready to launch
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[August 19, 2015]
NORMAL
- The physical therapist assistant (PTA) program at Heartland
Community College is set to begin in the 2016 spring semester. To
launch the program, Heartland completed a rigorous process
culminating in candidacy status being awarded as of July 21, 2015
from the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education.*
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The program is currently in the process of
developing and submitting the necessary data that will be utilized
in the progression towards achieving full accreditation. Sixteen
students are accepted into the program each year, with the first
application process having been completed Aug 1.
According to Dean of Health and Human Services, Becky LaMont, “The
need for a PTA program was identified in a collaborative visioning
effort in 2012, and Heartland was happy to respond to that demand.”
PTAs provide physical therapy treatments and procedures under the
direction and supervision of a licensed physical therapist. Students
complete 23 hours of general coursework prior to admittance into the
program, followed by 43 hours of technical and clinical education
courses.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2015/Aug/19/images/ads/current/award_shop_sda_071015.png) Heartland has relationships with 31 different clinical sites
including hospitals, nursing facilities, outpatient clinics, school
systems and sports medicine clinics. A majority of these are within
Heartland’s district, but also include sites in Springfield,
Champaign and Decatur.
On site, the Normal campus has a fully-equipped facility. “We have
everything you would find in a ‘real’ physical therapy clinical
environment,” explained Daryl Menke, PTA program coordinator.
“Students are provided learning and lab experiences needed to hone
their skills and provide interventions that will guide and promote
the health, well-being and life of the patient/clients served
through the restoration and enhancement of movement and function."
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More information about HCC’s PTA program is available at
https://www.heartland.edu/
catalog/pta/.
*Candidate
for Accreditation Status: Effective July 21, 2015, Heartland Community College
has been granted Candidate for Accreditation status by the Commission on
Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (1111 North Fairfax Street,
Alexandria, VA, 22314; phone: 703-706-3245; email:
accreditation@apta.org ). Candidate
for Accreditation is a pre-accreditation status of affiliation with the
Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education that indicates that
the program is progressing toward accreditation and may matriculate students in
technical/professional courses. Candidate for Accreditation is not an
accreditation status nor does it assure eventual accreditation.
[Becky Gropp, Heartland Community
College]
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