On the national front, at the 2010 House of Delegates, the PTA Caucus will pursue a by-law change which seeks a full vote for PTAs at the chapter level.  Effective July 1^st, 2010, the revised "Guide for Conduct of the PTA” and "Standards for Ethical Conduct for the Physical Therapist Assistant” will go into effect.  The APTA has made them available at www.apta.org for review.

At the chapter level, a significant challenge we face is increasing active participation by our PTA membership, as well as increasing PTA membership statewide.  One possible avenue to address this issue would be revisiting the idea of developing a PTA Special Interest Group (PTA SIG) within our chapter.  According to the American Physical Therapy Association’s Advisory Panel of Physical Therapist Assistants and the Physical Therapist Assistant Caucus, a chapter PTA SIG provides the following benefits:

·          Serve as a conduit for PTA members to be integrated into chapter activities, including special needs of the chapter.

·          Provide opportunities for PT/PTA members to discuss issues related to PTA education, licensure, practice, governance, and other professional issues.

·          Promote the PT/PTA team in the clinic and within the Association.

·          Provide a leadership development opportunity for PTAs.

·          Promote PTA membership at the grass roots.

Developing a PTA SIG is a significant undertaking; there needs to be consensus among PTA membership, as well as individual participation by as many as possible to achieve the goals of a SIG.  The challenges related to PTA issues represent the opinions of a sample of PTA members; however input is needed from as many members as possible.  Your opinion matters, but it can only be considered if it is heard.  You can accomplish this by taking advantage of the ITPA website, including the ability to network with other members, collaborate within groups, participate in PTA community blogs and forums, and maintain your personal profile.  I look forward to hearing from all of you on these and/or any other issues.  You can contact me by email through the ITPA website, through the "Communities of Interest-PTAs” site, or directly at lisa.stejskal@swic.edu.

As our chapter president, Sandra Levi, PT, PhD, stated in the December 2009/January 2010 PT Priority, "the future of physical therapy belongs to those who can embrace change and prepare for an uncertain future”.   Before we can prepare ourselves, PTAs need to come together to be better equipped to work with physical therapists to advance the profession and science of physical therapy. 

Finally, I would like to recognize Louise Dolvig, my predecessor.    As the PTA Director for the past four years, she has represented PTAs in our Chapter, as well as nationally in the PTA Caucus.  As the recipient of the 2009 Physical Therapist Assistant of the Year Award, her commitment to life-long learning and sharing her knowledge with others was recognized.  These attributes are exemplified in her mentoring of many PTA’s in the Chapter, including me.  Her encouragement and continued support helps me to take on this awesome responsibility.  I would also like to acknowledge my fellow nominee for PTA Director, Angela Wallace.  She feels passionately about the future of Physical Therapist Assistants.  She brings great ideas to the table and we agreed that no matter what the election results, we would work collaboratively to advance the interests and influence of PTAs.  I also want to thank everyone in the Southern District for their support and encouragement, especially Tina Tebbe, Barbie Tuncil, Michelle Kujawa, Kim Snyder and Jane Miller.

I am excited to be a part of the IPTA Board of Directors and Executive Committee.  The IPTA staff has been very patient and extremely helpful as I learn my new role in the chapter. I look forward to working with PTs/PTAs as we strive to promote our profession and achieve our shared goals.