Summer Health Clinical Experiences Provide Valuable Community Care

Faculty and students offer physical, occupational therapy and speech-language pathology

Faculty and students in Sacred Heart University’s College of Health Professions ran health clinicals, fitness groups and staffed a health center this summer at SHU’s Center for Healthcare Education, providing rehabilitation care to people in the greater Bridgeport community.

Occupational therapy professors Jaimee Hegge and Amanda Wheeler started the SHU & You Women’s Health Center, treating clients with pelvic health issues and breast cancer-related lymphedema, a swelling in the arm caused by a buildup of fluid that can result from having breast cancer surgery or other treatment. Speech-language pathology (SLP) professor Natasha Moran teamed up with physical therapy (PT) professor Wendy Romney to create a PT and SLP summer interprofessional clinical experience to help people who have had strokes to overcome their difficulties with both movement and communication. Clients experience aphasia, a disorder that affects communication, which is more difficult when paired with a movement task. Working together marked the first time PT and SLP joined forces to treat clients simultaneously. Ellen Martino, clinical assistant professor in the occupational therapy program, ran a fitness group for several weeks during the summer for clients with neurological disabilities.

SHU students worked directly with patients throughout the summer. They developed health care plans and observed and treated clients as they made progress.

“These health services are a win-win,” said Karen Daley, interim dean of the College of Health Professions. “Our students are getting important experience in the field under the leadership of our esteemed faculty, and the clients are getting the help they deserve.”

SHU & You Women’s Health Center

Starting a women’s clinic was a no-brainer for Hegge and Wheeler. They have valuable skills in specialty areas and, when they sat down to talk, they realized they had the same vision: to help women. “We have a skill set that serves the female population,” Hegge said.

Wheeler added, “It’s difficult to access care in these specialty areas. Cost of these services is often expensive, and finding a clinic that specializes in these areas is not easy. We’re open to serving any women in the community who would benefit from receiving our services. Jaimee and I are a good team, our skills complement one another. Plus, we’re learning from each other.”

Hegge works with women, especially new mothers, who have pelvic floor dysfunction, which could present itself as urinary incontinence, painful intercourse or back pain. She’s dedicated hours of research to the topic and is passionate about providing care to women.

“There’s this myth out there that after women give birth, they’ll have incontinence or some type of pelvic floor issue that they’ll ‘have to live with.’ They’re under the impression that ‘this is just how it is now.’ But that’s not the case, and we have to debunk that myth,” Hegge said.

Clients who schedule an appointment with Hegge fill out an extensive questionnaire that enables her to assess their needs. When they arrive for the appointment, they sit in a comfortable setting and have a lengthy discussion about their health histories and birth stories. “There’s a lot of education done at this point,” Hegge said. “I’m educating women on their pelvic floor using an anatomical model and explaining what certain muscles do and how organs work.”

From there, Hegge and the clients create a care plan. Hegge typically introduces exercises and lifestyle changes to help with their issues.

Wheeler uses a similar approach to developing a treatment plan in partnership with her patients. She uses her expertise to create treatment plans for women who have or had breast cancer to address issues they may have related to cancer treatment including decreased shoulder movement or pain, shoulder or hand weakness and lymphedema. She also works with women to educate them on preventive care strategies.

“This isn’t just about seeing them for a few treatment sessions to address the issue,” Wheeler said. “This is about providing them with the education and tools to deal with chronic issues. We want people to know they don’t have to live with their conditions, and we can help. There’s this notion that once someone beats cancer, they are a survivor and can move on with their lives, but there are many debilitating conditions that can develop because of treatment.”

Occupational therapy students observed Hegge and Wheeler as they worked in the health center. “We want our students to have exposure and experience in these niche areas,” Wheeler said. “We give them exposure and then have them reflect on the experiences.”

Hegge said it’s been exciting hearing from the community and providing a service they didn’t know existed. She and Wheeler hope to attract more clients and continue offering their services at the center.

“Women keep these issues quiet because they are resilient, but they shouldn’t have to sacrifice comfort in their daily activities when there are tools out there to help them,” Hegge said.

PT and SLP interprofessional clinical experience

Graduate students from PT and SLP programs joined forces for an interprofessional approach to treating people during a 10-week summer experience. One day a week, students and professors worked with people recovering from strokes and dealing with aphasia. The goal was to get clients to walk and talk at the same time, while students assessed their balance, ability to pronounce and vocalize words, understand tasks and follow instructions.

“Students had the opportunity to learn about their discipline in an in-depth way,” Romney said. “This was an opportunity to collaborate.”

Before a client came in, professors and students had a pre-brief session to discuss what they anticipated would happen with the client. “This was an opportunity to check in before the client got there,” Romney said.

Then, guided by faculty, students developed a course of action and implemented it when the patient arrived. “Students really worked together and looked to each other for next steps,” Romney said. As a client walked on a treadmill, students asked them to talk in full sentences. “This was very challenging for our patients,” Romney said. However, it enabled students to assess patients and advise them on ways to progress.

A debriefing discussion followed each session. “They talked about how to modify plans for next time and what they would do differently,” Moran said. Over the weeks, Moran said, she could see the students’ confidence increasing.

“The SLP students were definitely nervous at first, but by the end, they’d had great interactions, and they really learned a lot,” Moran said. “They saw the importance of collaboration. It was nice to see their growth.”

Plus, the clients appreciated the medical attention. “They liked being tested, and they saw that they were getting better outcomes,” Moran said.

Romney noted that using a holistic approach to care enabled the group to collaborate, and they saw great results because of it.

“The clinical experience is unique in that it not only enables the clinicians to learn from the clients, but it also enables the clinicians to learn from each other and gain new perspectives,” said Nicole Arnaoutis, a SLP graduate student. “As a future speech pathologist, being able to work hand-in-hand with the physical therapy clinicians has opened a new door of opportunities in my clinical education that I can apply to any future setting.”

Other graduate students said the hands-on work enabled them to modify therapeutic activities “on the fly” and advocate for the importance of SLP services. “We had so many great moments in which we were able to educate and learn from our PT peers,” said Grace Major, a SLP graduate student. “It was a great opportunity to get a taste of what therapy is really like in a rehabilitation setting where you’re collaborating with many different kinds of professionals.”

Fitness group

For the third summer, Martino welcomed young adults with developmental disabilities to exercise with her and occupational therapy graduate students outside at the Center for Healthcare Education.

At fitness group, the individuals participated in variety of stretches, obstacle courses, movement games emphasizing healthy nutritional choices, and learned about proper body mechanics. The graduate students incorporated clients’ favorite fun, motivating music. Everyone brought a yoga mat and a bottle of water, Martino said.

“I think everyone really enjoyed it,” Martino added. Clients and students learned from the experience.

Graduate students fulfilled their field work requirements by working with the clients. They practiced brief assessments with several clients, with faculty supervision, measuring their range of motion and strength. “Students are used to practicing on each other, but this was their opportunity to work with real clients,” Martino said.

Clients had varying degrees of skills and endurance levels. Students adapted certain activities as needed to promote all clients’ participation and enjoyment.

“Students learned how to adapt to a situation in the moment,” Martino said. “This reduced potential frustration for our clients and helped them to feel confident and have fun. In addition, the students learned how to modify activities to provide an optimal level of challenge.”

Those interested in joining the summer fitness group can contact Martino at martinoe@sacredheart.edu.

Top: From left are graduate students Noelle Frederick (PT), Grace Major (SLP) and Justine Sweeney (PT) working with a client during an interprofessional PT and SLP clinic.

Inset: Professor Amanda Wheeler and OT student Reilly Simpson work with a client at the SHU & You Women’s Health Center.