Late last week, Physiotherapy Alberta was advised of a recent change to the Alberta Public Health Disease Management Guidelines: Coronavirus – COVID19.

Vaccination protects the health and wellbeing of physiotherapists and other health-care workers who are vital to the health system. Public health experts indicate that vaccination is very likely to decrease the risk of a physiotherapist transmitting COVID-19 to their families and the patients they serve.

With amendments to the Health Professions Act requiring Colleges and Associations to separate, Physiotherapy Alberta will become a single mandate organization and would like to understand how the newsletter is currently used by our regulated members so we can continue to improve our messaging. Answers are kept completely confidential. Survey closes February 17, 2021.

In the autumn of 2020, Physiotherapy Alberta circulated a draft Performance of Restricted Activities Standard of Practice to registrants and sought their feedback. This article updates registrants on the status of the draft Standard and discusses actions members can take now, in preparation for the transition to individualized authorization.

Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries are common among athletes and military personnel and have been associated with an increased risk of developing knee osteoarthritis. This research employed a twin study approach to attempt to quantify the genetic contributions to ACL rupture.

The 2020 Award for Excellence in Innovation recipient is Lauren Singh, a physiotherapist recognized by her teammates on the Calgary Pulmonary Rehabilitation Team for her outstanding work in answering the challenges to pulmonary rehabilitation service delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic by developing a virtual care delivery model for the program.

This month’s article highlights a follow-up study by KNGF (the Royal Dutch Society of Physical Therapy) that took a deeper dive into exploring the impacts of self and peer assessment and feedback of clinical performance (client communication and record-keeping) in a broader group of physiotherapists.

The CAPR (Canadian Alliance of Physiotherapy Regulators) is currently modifying the Clinical Component to run in a fully virtual format in 2021 and are seeking examiners. Click here for more information.

The Department of Physical Therapy is recruiting physical therapists to participate in the Multiple Mini Interview admissions process for the next admissions cycle of the MScPT Program. The MMI will take place virtually this year (Zoom) on Saturday March 27. If you are interested in participating in either a full or half-day please let us know by completing the short survey below. The Department of Physical Therapy is committed to the promotion of diversity and inclusivity. To reflect the diversity of our stakeholders and profession, physical therapists from minoritized groups, Indigenous Peoples, persons of diverse sexual orientation, gender identity or expression (LGBTQ2S+) and others are encouraged to participate. The Department is also establishing an admissions advisory group to inform changes to our admissions processes to further promote diversity and inclusion in the MScPT Program. We are specifically looking to recruit members from minoritized communities, Indigenous Peoples, and persons of diverse sexual orientation, gender identity or expression (LGBTQ2S+) to this advisory group. If interested please indicate your interest on the same survey. Click here for more information.