The Neurological Physical Therapy Residency Program, in conjunction with Norton Neuroscience Institute and Bellarmine University, is a patient-centered program providing advanced physical therapy clinical training. The program promotes the application of evidence-based knowledge and skills with emphasis on service and lifelong learning. 

Program Mission

The program supports the mission of Norton Healthcare by providing high-quality health care and education to all those we serve in a manner that responds to the needs of our communities, honors our faith heritage and celebrates our values. This environment produces leaders with advanced neurological rehabilitation training who will make a lasting contribution to their local and professional communities. Through this program, residents and staff educate, advocate, empower and improve the quality of life of our patients, their families, caregivers and our community.

Program Details

The APTA-credentialed residency program is 52 weeks long and begins each January. A typical week includes approximately 26 hours of unmentored clinical practice, three hours of mentored clinical practice, one to two hours of resident/physician conferences and/or didactic coursework, two to four hours of teaching neuroscience and rehabilitation courses, four hours attending specialty clinics or shadowing physicians, two hours conducting clinical research and one hour providing community service.

Residents have the unique opportunity to work with patients with diverse neurological diagnoses across the acute care and outpatient settings at Norton Healthcare, acute rehabilitation at Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Center and in partnership with other community resources. Each resident spends time in specialty clinics and with therapists and physicians who are specialists in their field. This position also includes teaching responsibilities for entry-level neurological lectures and laboratories at Bellarmine University’s Division of Physical Therapy. In addition, residents participate in clinical research and complete a case study during their residency year.

Curriculum

Clinical rotations and 1:1 mentorship

• Advanced patient management skills (stroke, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, vestibular, multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease)
• Advanced pediatric patient management
• Clinical, foundational and behavioral sciences
• Clinical research
• Community leadership
• Differential diagnoses
• Kinematic tests and measurements
• Motivation and behavioral assessment and interventions
• Neuropharmacology
• Neuropsychiatry
• Opportunities to gain teaching experience and skills for clinical mentoring
• Radiographic imaging
• Research interpretation

This program participates in a Residency/Fellowship Physical Therapist Centralized Application Service (RF-PTCAS).

For more information and how to apply, visit the following sites:

Program Outcomes

• The Neurologic Physical Therapy Residency Program, established and initially accredited in 2012, has a 92% completion rate to date (one voluntary withdrawal). 
• Program has 100% resident graduate pass rate for the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties (ABPTS) exam.
• Resident is able to identify and develop attributes of expert practice while contributing to the body of literature and teaching skills.
• Program maintains American Board of Physical Therapy Residency & Fellowship Education accreditation.
• Program maintains financial stability.

Tuition and Financials

The resident is responsible for living expenses with no additional tuition for coursework. Residents must plan for living expenses and transportation to clinical facilities. Suggestions for where to live can be provided on request.

Staff Member

Residency includes employment with benefits for the 26 hours a week of clinical practice. This includes full health benefits and malpractice insurance.

For more information, contact:

Liz Ulanowski, P.T., DPT, NCS
Program Manager
Neurological Physical Therapy Residency Program
Norton Healthcare

Phone: (502) 446-8520
Fax: (502) 446-8530
eulanowski@bellarmine.edu

The Norton Neurologic Physical Therapy Residency Program is credentialed by the American Physical Therapy Association as a post-professional residency program for physical therapists.

Please feel free to reach out to our residency graduates with any questions:

Shelby Schroeder, P.T., DPT, NCS, at schroeder@bellarmine.edu

Megan Cash, P.T., DPT, NCS

Natalie Vance, P.T., DPT, NCS at nelliott@bellarmine.edu

Jeanette Lanoire, P.T., DPT, NCS at jeanette.lanoire@nortonhealthcare.org