Johnson College is pleased to announce that recruitment has begun for its newest program. The Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) Technology Program will begin classes in fall 2013. The PTA Program is a full-time, 5-semester, day program that consists of general education courses, technical PTA specific courses, and three clinical education experiences.
The mission of the College’s PTA Program is to provide students with an enriching educational experience so they are prepared to be competent and caring physical therapist assistants who work under the direction or supervision of a physical therapist in a variety of settings, including acute care hospitals, impatient and outpatient rehabilitation facilities, outpatient clinics, skilled nursing facilities, and schools. PTAs help people of all ages who have medical or health related conditions that affect their mobility or ability to perform functional activities on a daily basis. The PTA’s duties can include assisting in instructing patients in exercises and activities of daily living, using special equipment (including physical modalities), collecting data on the patient’s progress, and documenting and reporting on the patient’s response.
Students/graduates will be committed to continuing education and lifelong learning and will adhere to the behavioral expectations outlined in the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) Guide for Conduct and Standards of Ethical conduct for the PTA.
The Program is seeking accreditation from The Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), which is an accrediting agency that is nationally recognized by the US Department of Education (USDE) and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). The program has submitted an Application for Candidacy which is the formal application required in the pre-accreditation stage. Submission of these documents does not assure that the program will be granted Candidate for Accreditation Status. Achievement of Candidate for Accreditation status id required prior to implementation of the professional/technical phase of the program; therefore, no students may be enrolled in professional/technical courses until Candidate for Accreditation status has been achieved. Further, though achievement of Candidate for Accreditation status signifies satisfactory progress toward accreditation, it does not assure that that the program will be granted accreditation.
PTA is the first program to be housed in the College’s new Health Science Technology Center. Through an academic and master planning process, the College determined that a new building dedicated to health science was needed in order to offer technology-based academic programs in emerging health science fields. With the aging of Northeastern Pennsylvania’s population and related healthcare needs, plus the impact of the new medical college in Scranton, employers will be seeking a larger pool of highly skilled personnel in health science fields.
Program Director Melissa Cencetti, DPT, PT, MS, states, “We are very excited about the introduction of the Physical Therapist Assistant Program at Johnson College. I think that with the changes in healthcare and the economy, we are going to see an increase in need for clinicians like PTA’s who are trained at particular skills that provide a service to the community. With only five semesters of post-secondary education, students can expect to find a decent paying job in most regions across the country.”
To find out more about Johnson College and its Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) Technology Program or to enroll in the Program, visit www.johnson.edu or call 1-800-2WE-WORK.
Johnson College’s Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) Technology Program will begin classes in fall 2013.
Left to Right: Dominick Carachilo ’82, Vice President of Academic Affairs; Melissa Ide, Vice President of Enrollment Services; Melissa Cencetti, DPT, PT, MS, Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) Technology Program Director