News from the Foundation for Physical Therapy.

Foundation Awards $310,500 for Fellowship and Scholarships

The Foundation for Physical Therapy has awarded $310,500 for 20 doctoral scholarships and 1 fellowship through the Doctoral Opportunities for Clinicians and Scholars (DOCS) program.

Michael Tevald, PT, MPT, PhD, has been named as the recipient of 2007 New Investigator Fellowship Training Initiative (NIFTI) fellowship. This 2-year, $78,000 award was given in support of his research project, "In Vivo Skeletal Muscle Oxidative Capacity and Physical Function in Older Humans." The project is designed to investigate the relationship between impaired oxidative capacity and physical function in older people. This project hopefully will lay the foundation for future studies to develop interventions that reverse this impairment and potentially improve physical function in elderly people.

The Promotional of Doctoral Studies Sholarships (PODS I and II) fund physical therapists and physical therapist assistants who have completed 1 full year of doctoral coursework (PODS I) or physical therapists and physical therapist assistants who have entered the post-candidacy phase of postprofessional doctoral studies (PODS II).

The 2007 recipients of the $7,500 PODS I doctoral scholarships are Joaquin A Barrios, IV, PT, DPT, University of Delaware; George J Beneck, PT, MS, OCS, University of Southern California; Dustin Hardwick, PT, DPT, Washington University in St Louis; Erin H Hartigan, PT, DPT, MS, University of Delaware; Andrew Littmann, PT, MA, University of Iowa; Mark Lyle, PT, MSPT, OCS, University of Southern California; Brian W Noehren, PT, MSPT, University of Delaware; John Popovich, PT, DPT, MS, University of Southern California; and Lori Turtle, PT, MPT, Washington University in St Louis.

The 2007 recipients of the $15,000 PODS II doctoral scholarships are Justin Beebe, PT, MSPT, Washington University in St Louis; Antoinette Domingo, PT, MPT, University of Michigan; Wendy Herbert, PT, MS, Ohio State University; Minna Hong, PT, MSPT, Washington University in St Louis; Julia Looper, PT, MSPT, University of Michigan; Sujata Pradhan, PT, MS, University of Pittsburgh; Sara Scholtes, PT, DPT, Washington University in St Louis; Neena Sharma, PT, MSPT, University of Kansas Medical Center; Catherine Siengsukon, PT, MSPT, University of Kansas Medical Center; Richard B Souza, PT, MPT, University of Southern California; and Jaime Talkowski, PT, MPT, University of Pittsburgh.

Andrew Littmann was awarded the Patricia Leahy Doctoral Scholarship, given to a PODS I recipient for postprofessional doctoral studies in neurology. Antoinette Domingo received the Marylou Barnes Doctoral Scholarship, awarded to PODS II scholarship recipients for postprofessional doctoral studies in neurology. Both doctoral scholarships are generously funded by the Foundation's Neurology Endowment Fund, endowed by APTA's Neurology Section.

Brian Noehren was awarded the Viva J Erikson Doctoral Scholarship, given to a PODS recipient for postprofessional doctoral studies, which is intended to help prepare the recipient for academic leader ship of physical therapy education programs. The award is generously funded by the Viva J Erikson Fund established in 1995 in memory of this accomplished physical therapist and APTA leader.

The PODS I awarded to Erin Hartigan was made possible by the Pittsburgh-Marquette Challenge. This annual grass-roots student fundraising effort coordinated by physical therapist students from Marquette University and the University of Pittsburgh has become so successful that this year, in addition to the research grant that the Challenge supports, it is funding a PODS I scholarship.

Clinical Research Network Preliminary Outcomes Presented

Principal investigators of the Clinical Research Network's (CRN) 4 studies reported the preliminary primary outcomes of their 3-year research projects to an audience of Foundation Trustees, physical therapist researchers, and other interested parties who met on May 23, 2007, in Washington, DC.

As an introduction to the study presentations, CRN principal investigator Carolee Winstein, PT, PhD, FAPTA, and Stan Azen, PhD, outlined the network in which the 4 projects were conducted. The 4 CRN network studies are PEDALS (Pediatric Endurance Development and Limb Strengthening), MUSSEL (Muscle-Specific Strength Training Effectiveness Post-Lumbar Microdiscectomy), STOMPS (Strengthening and Optimal Movements for Painful Shoulders in Chronic Spinal Cord Injury) and STEPS (Strength Training Effectiveness Post-Stroke). Presenting outcomes from the 4 studies were principal investigators Eileen Fowler, PT, PhD (PEDALS); Kornelia Kulig, PT, PhD (MUSSEL); Sara Mulroy, PT, PhD (STOMPS); and David Brown, PT, PhD (STEPS).

The preliminary primary outcomes presented were:

* PEDALS: a 12-week program of stationary cycling is a safe and effective intervention to use to improve physical fitness in children with cerebral palsy.

* MUSSEL: a standardized (symptom, performance, and perceived exertion) exercise program enhanced recovery after lumbar microdiscectomy.

* STOMPS: a combination of exercise and movement optimization was more effective in reducing shoulder pain than attention control in individuals with spinal cord injury. Reduced shoulder pain was accompanied by increased participation and self-reported quality of life.

* STEPS: body weight-supported treadmill training (BWSTT) resulted in a clinically meaningful change in walking ability with or without the addition of a strength-training program in patients recovering from stroke.

All of the presentations highlighted the groundbreaking research that was conducted and the fascinating and sometimes unexpected paths of discovery that they encountered.

This $1.5-million, multisite physical therapy research clinical network has been the largest project that the Foundation has funded to date. It was made possible by generous corporate contributions from several Foundation funders.

The day-long meeting started on a very positive note with a dynamic presentation by Yvonne Maddox, Deputy Director, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) of the National-Institutes of Health (NIH) (Figure). Her presentation, "Update on Rehabilitation Research at the National Institutes of Health," provided very useful information to attendees about the state of rehabilitation research funding at NIH.

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Recipients in the News

In this issue of PTJ, Stacey C Dusing, PT, PhD, recipient of a 2002 Mary McMillan doctoral scholarship and a 2005 PODS II doctoral scholarship, coauthored the article "Temporal and Spatial Gait Characteristics of Children With Hurler Syndrome After Umbilical Cord Blood Transplantation" (pp 978-994) with Deborah E Thorpe, PT, PhD, PCS; Vicki S Mercer, PT, PhD; Angela E Rosenberg, PT, DrPH; Michele D Poe, PhD; and Maria L Escolar, MD. The findings are based, in part, on research findings from Dusing's dissertation work, which was supported by her Foundation awards.

Tiffany E Shubert, PT, PhD, MPT, recipient of a Mary McMillan doctoral scholarship in 2002 and a PODS I scholarship in 2003, recently completed her doctorate at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill. She is now a research scientist at the Institute on Aging at UNC Chapel Hill. Her dissertation was titled "Quantifying Frequency and Variety of Activities in Older Adults: Relationships and Physical and Cognitive Performance."

[DOI: 10.2522/ptj.2007.87.8.1093]