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Clinical Affiliations

Statement of Clinical Education Philosophy

Clinical education is an essential component and an integral part of the entry-level Master of Physical Therapy curriculum at Carroll College. Clinical education is integrated into the curriculum as observations; course experiences both on-site at the College and off-site at practice settings; and full-time internships in a variety of settings and environments representative of diverse and ethical physical therapy practice. Entry-level Master of Physical Therapy students are active participants in clinical education.

An active partnership between the academic program at Carroll and the clinical sites affiliated with Carroll's academic program is necessary in order to provide clinical education experiences for students and encourage life long learning in students. The active partnership is achieved through on-site visits to affiliated clinical settings by the program's Academic Coordinator of Clinical Education (ACCE) and faculty; on-site visits to the College by the clinical faculty including Clinical Coordinators of Clinical Education (CCCEs) and Clinical Instructors (CIs); and frequent communication between the institutions using various medium including telephone, mail, and electronic mail. Communication between the academic program and the clinical site encompasses, but is not limited to, such topics as student performance, treatment effectiveness, curriculum design and content, teaching strategies and effectiveness, and clinical research.

The academic program at Carroll maintains the number of sites necessary to provide the students with the opportunity to utilize practice skills in a safe and effective manner and understand practice across the life span in diverse settings. A regional paradigm is employed in clinical site utilization. The academic program is pro-active in developing sites especially in under served areas and settings.

In the academic program, the ACCE manages the clinical education component of the curriculum as a limited and valuable human, clinical, and economic resource. The Academic Coordinator of Clinical Education solicits input regarding the clinical education component of the program and the curriculum from other department faculty, the clinical community, the CCCEs and CIs, program alumni, and the program's students. Other full-time and part-time faculty also participate in the clinical education component of the program by making clinical visits and providing continuing education to clinical sites during the Fall and Spring Term full-time clinical internships.

Adopted by the Department of Physical Therapy Faculty in November, 1995
Revised and Approved in July, 1996

Clinical Internships

Assignment of students to clinical facilities during Clinical Internship I, II, and III is the responsibility of the program's Academic Coordinator of Clinical Education. Students will be placed outside the city of Waukesha. Thus, a student must have access to a motor vehicle. Housing costs may also be incurred by the student. Appropriate dress for a clinical internship is determined by the clinical facility. During clinical internships, all students must wear the name tag supplied by the program which identifies them as students.

The clinical internship courses are graded on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (S/U) basis. The clinical internship grade is based on the evaluation of the clinical performance tool completed by the clinical facility's Clinical Instructor. The grade is assigned by the program's Academic Coordinator for Clinical Education. If a grade of U is earned in any one of the clinical internship course, the clinical internship course may be repeated only once. If student receives a grade of U in more than one clinical internship course, the student will be dismissed from the program.

Promptness and attendance are mandatory during clinical internships. Absences for communicable illness or health emergencies are allowed during clinical internships. The program and the clinical facility must be notified of the health-related absence and the absence must be remediated. Make up time or other type of remediation is dependent upon clinical faculty and facility availability. The student will not be allowed to progress or graduate until the make-up time or remediation has been completed.