Th c I \~lite Cotmty 1\11 cdical Center South's second iloor housed 24 new occupants this year, but thehe 'vVere not pal iellls; they were students. Including six professors and some not-so-lively participants in the new cadaveric anatomy laboratory, Harding's new physical therapy graduate program considered the hospital to be their classroom. The results of a 2008 study organized by President David Burks suggested that adding aPT graduate school would be successful, and the school was born. "In an economy where people are losing theirjobs right and left it seems, physical therapy is growing and people are getting jobs," Mike McGalliard, physical therapy professor and director of the program, said. Students of the program were appreciative of the opportunity to receive physical therapy training from a Christian perspective. "The program is really mission-oriented," graduate student Caitlin Garfield said. "It should prepare me to be an amazing physical therapist and help me integrate my faith with my profession." The PT school also boasted a cadaveric anatomy lab, being Harding's only program to have one. Drawing blood samples, first year physicians assistant graduate student Tessa Tunnell puts her classroom knowledge to practice during lab on Sept. 28. The Clinical Skills class had weekly labs, which allowed students to get comfortable with different medical equipment and procedures. Ashel Parsons f'IQ Health Sciences-Graduate "Dissecting a cadaver makes you appreciate people who donate their bodies to science," Garfield said. Although PT students were the only ones allowed to perform dissections, physicians assistant students were also allowed to examine the already-dissected cadavers. "In the future, we may use [the lab] for nursing, for speech language pathology, maybe some for undergraduate anatomy and physiology,""McGalliard said. "But more than likely, it will be people coming in to view what has already been dissected, as opposed to dissecting it for themselves." McGalliard estimated that the lab's size would allow for the addition of more cadavers next year as the program continued to grow. "Physical therapy is deeply rooted in anatomy," McGalliard said. ''As such, we need to have the best possible situations for the students to learn anatomy. We really have a fantastic facility." The program planned to accept 35 new students in the upcoming year, adding to the growing reputation of the first PT program at a Church of Christ-affiliated university. Lauren Bucher Second year communication sciences and disorders graduate students listen to a lecture given by instructor Alice Henton on Sept. 27. Graduate level CSD students were eligible to attend Harding's HIZ-PATH program in Zambia during the summer in order to meet course requirements. GrantSchol
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