5/6/08
This is my completed product. I am teaching three students the complete rehabilitation of a stroke patient. The top picture shows a strengthening and range of motion exercise/mobility exercise. The bottom picture shows the patient and a student throwing a baseball back and forth, which helps with balance and coordination.

4/19/08

This is taking place in my mentor's living room floor, and I am learning strengthening exercises for the arm. After a stroke, people lose mobility and strength in their ligaments on the affected side. Here, I am strengthening my patient's arm, as well as increasing her range of motion.

3/25/08

My mentor had just finished teaching me how to make a treatment plan and she made me do one for the CVA patient. I am pictured here making the treatment plan for the patient at my mentor's dining room table. The bottom picture shows the form up close.

At Last!

My product is 100% completed! It has been a long road, but I made it through.
My product was to completely rehabilitate a CVA patient and then to teach three other students what I have learned. Learning the exercises was actually harder than it looked. I had to learn how to perform an evaluation and design a treatment plan tailored to the patient's needs and goals, and then had to learn how to carry out the patient's plan of treatment. I had to document the patient's progress in a SOAP format: Subjective is how the patient felt that day and comments the patient may have made that are important, Objective is what I may have observed about the patient or noticed during a physical examination, Assessment is my opinion of the patient's condition and progress, and Plan is what I plan on doing to help the patient's condition or maybe what the patient achieved on that particular day.
Learning the exercises was actually more difficult than I had thought. My mentor was very helpful and knowledgable when it came to me learning the exercises. She made the process easier, but it was still very difficult. I had to learn how to deal with a CVA patient, and how to react to certain situations and comments and how to interact with the patient. This product has been a major learning experience with me, and something I will remember when I enter the workplace as a geriatric physical therapist.

Almost There...

I am halfway done with my product. I have spent 12 hours so far with my mentor, and the product is coming along well.
I have already designed a treatment plan for the CVA patient. The treatment plan consists of several appointments that are designed to help the patient with balance and coordination, walking, and gaining back motor control they have lost due to the stroke. So far, my mentor and I have seen the patient four times, with one appointment being the evaluation. The evaluation consists of asking the patient to do various things, such as lifting an arm on the affected side or getting up out of a prone position.
I have had three appointments with the patient, and I am learning a lot from my mentor. I am learning what takes place during an evaluation, and how to carry out a treatment plan. I am also learning several exercises that help with balance, walking, motor control, and relearning how to do everyday things, such as tying shoes or washing dishes.
Aside from schedule conflicts, the product portion of the project had gone really well.

The Beginning

The product phase thus far has been very easy. I have had a mentor since the beginning of the year, so I didn't have the hassle of trying to find a mentor last minute, which made the whole process much easier. So, my advice to people who are starting the project is to go ahead a secure a mentor before you start the project. Do not do it too far in advance, but jusr make sure you have one before you start your project. It is not mandatory that you have a mentor before you start the project, but it will make the process A LOT smoother for you.

I already have half of my hours complete, and I have accomplished a lot in those 7 hours. My product is following a Cardiovascular Accident (stroke) patient all the way through therapy from beginning evaluation to discharge. I have already begun the treatment plan for the patient and thus far it is going well.