Clarkson University professor Vicki LaFay was recently elected an officer and 2018-2019 nominating committee chair of the American Council of Academic Physical Therapy (ACAPT) National Consortium of Clinical Educators (NCCE).

LaFay is director of Clinical Education for Clarkson University's Doctor of Physical Therapy program.

She is a licensed physical therapist with nearly 25 years of experience.

This month, she'll be attending an educational leadership conference in Phoenix, where educators and clinicians from around the nation will “forge plans to assure that physical therapy students are trained in the best practices for their evolving field of work,” according to a press release from Clarkson.

A few years ago, ACAPT organized a summit with stakeholders from clinical practice, education, business, and health-related occupations such as medicine.

“This was an important step,” LaFay notes, “because representatives from hospitals, outpatient clinics, and rehab centers had not been fully included in discussions about how to best educate physical therapists. Their voices needed to be heard.”

One result of this summit was the creation of the NCCE, which is a partnership between clinical and academic practitioners.

In addition to serving on the NCCE, LaFay also is on a task force that focuses on identifying common terminology for all those involved in physical therapy education and practice, the release said.

“To be involved at the ground level like this, to have a say in how clinical education is moving across the nation is very exciting for me,” she adds. “We're looking at how the field is changing, and how we can assure a better alliance between academic and clinical programs that will enable graduates to offer the best care in the many challenging professional settings they will encounter. They may work in hospitals, outpatient clinics, rehab centers, schools, industry, sports, hospices, or home health care.”

“It's fortune that Clarkson University is at the forefront of this new way of education. We're training students to be entry-level doctoral physical therapists. In many states, patients can come to them directly,” she says.

“As a department, we're really trying to be part of the national level on policy and research. We want students to be leaders and look outside themselves to help their profession, so we try to set that example every day.”