Award Date

5-15-2025

Degree Type

Doctoral Project

Degree Name

Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT)

Department

Physical Therapy

First Committee Member

Daniel Young

Second Committee Member

Keoni Kins

Third Committee Member

Brandi Varnado

Fourth Committee Member

Dustin Clow

Fifth Committee Member

Kai-Yu Ho

Number of Pages

33

Abstract

At the collegiate of performing arts, those who participate in classes and performances will often be at risk for musculoskeletal injury due to repetition and specific patterns of their movements. The establishment of a pro-bono physical therapy clinic for students enrolled in undergraduate and graduate-level fine arts programs may improve healthcare access for this often underserved community. The goals of this service learning project were to provide injury-prevention screenings to dancers and administer specialized physical therapy (PT) services in the form of evaluations and treatments to all students in the UNLV (University of Las Vegas, Nevada) College of Fine Arts (CFA) school, under the direct supervision of three UNLV PT faculty therapists. This project also allowed the UNLV PT students within the project to gain hands-on PT skills in a specialized outpatient setting while completing didactic courses in their second year. To prepare for their time in the CFA PT clinic, students participated in shadowing hours in the clinic, completed an online course for specialized treatment of dancers, and helped administer dance screenings at the annual Healthy Performers Northern Nevada workshop. A total of 29 students were evaluated and treated during the 2023-2024 school year, with the majority of students in the music, dance, and theater majors. One dance screen for a patient was administered during the school year. Five exit surveys were completed by patients by the end of their treatment plans, and 15 were lost to follow-up. The PT students each completed four reflections over their time working in the clinic, and the consensus was that they all benefited from this additional time to practice their skills in the clinic under the professors’ supervision.

Keywords

Physical therapy; College of Fine Arts; dance; music; injury prevention; dance screen

Disciplines

Physical Therapy

File Format

pdf

File Size

351 KB

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

Rights

IN COPYRIGHT. For more information about this rights statement, please visit http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

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