The American Board of Physical Therapy Residency and Fellowship Education (ABPTRFE) is a seven-physical therapist member Board with two Councils, the nine-member Credentialing Services Council and the five-member Program Services Council, that serve the Board. Each Council has a respective Committee that assists in carrying out the tasks of the Council.
ABPTRFE Board
ABPTRFE Board Members:
Gail Freidhoff, PT, MAT, SCS, ATC (Chair)
Cuong Pho, PT, DPT, OCS, SCS, CHT, FAAOMPT
Linda Csiza, PT, DSc, NCS
Jay Irrgang, PT, PhD, ATC
Greg Hartley, PT, DPT, GCS
John DeWitt, PT, DPT, SCS, ATC
Tara Ridge, PT, MS, SCS
ABPTRFE Board Tasks:
1. Determine the requirements with which a residency or fellowship education program must comply in order to be credentialed and amend these requirements as appropriate.
2. Provide an efficient and credible system for the evaluation, credentialing, and re-credentialing of physical therapy residency and fellowship education programs.
3. Develop and maintain the policy and procedures for the implementation and evaluation of the credentialing process including, but not limited to, the development and/or maintenance of processes for:
a. Credentialing residency and fellowship programs
b. Selecting application reviewers
c. Documenting findings of written review and site visit
d. Auditing credentialed clinical residency and fellowship programs
e. Re-credentialing clinical residency and fellowship programs
4. Provide formal recognition of APTA credentialed residency and fellowship programs.
5. Oversee the activities of the Credentialing Services Council and the Program Services Council and evaluate effectiveness of processes and initiatives.
6. Address the demand for credentialed residency and fellowship programs by promoting wide regional representation and access to all specialty programs.
7. Foster retention of credentialed residency and fellowship programs.
8. Identify new and existing funding sources for residency and fellowship programs.
9. Act upon all grievance issues related to the credentialing of clinical residency and fellowship programs.
10. Appoint members of the Credentialing Services Council and Program Services Council.
Credentialing Services Council
Credentialing Services Council Members:
Anne E. Turner, PT, MS, ACCE (Chair)
Tamara Gravano, PT, DPT, GCS
William Woodall, PT, EdD, SCS
Jessica Heath, PT, OCS, Cert. MDT, CSCS
Tammy Burlis, PT, DPT, MHS, CCS
Mary Thompson, PT, PhD, GCS
Mike Puniello, PT, DPT, MS, OCS, FAAOMPT
Ed Mulligan, PT, DPT, OCS, SCS, ATC
Kim Curbow-Wilcox, PT, PhD, GCS
Credentialing Services Council Tasks:
1. Assist with credentialing residency and fellowship programs that effectively demonstrate compliance with the credentialing requirements, using the following process:
a. Review applications
b. Conduct and oversee site team visits
c. Provide credentialing recommendations to the American Board of Physical Therapy Residency and Fellowship Education
d. Review Annual Reports and make recommendations to the American Board of Physical Therapy Residency and Fellowship Education
2. Develop, implement, and evaluate a training program for application reviewers/on-site visitors
Program Services Council
Program Services Council Members:
Jason Tonley, PT, DPT, OCS (Chair)
Jessie Mathers, PT, OCS, FAAOMPT
Airelle Hunter-Giordano, PT, DPT, SCS, OCS, CSCS
Matt S. Briggs, PT, DPT, SCS, ATC, CSCS
Noel Goodstadt, PT, DPT, OCS, CSCS
Program Services Council Tasks:
1. Promote the development of additional residency and fellowship programs in physical therapy, including:
a. Identifying and addressing barriers to program development and credentialing
b. Providing developing programs with essential resources
c. Identifying and implementing effective marketing plans to increase awareness of residency/fellowship education
2. Promote physical therapy residency/fellowship program faculty development.
3. Promote the development analyses of practice in specialty areas currently without a Description of Specialty Practice or valid practice analysis.
4. Promote the development and implementation of processes to assure quality in credentialed residency and fellowship programs.
5. Foster collaborative partnerships between clinical, academic, Association, and other entities to best utilize resources for program development.
6. Partner with professional education programs, section, chapter, and Association-wide efforts to promote participation in residency/fellowship education.
Committees
Credentialing Services & Program Services Committees (.pdf)