Kansas City, Mo.— Diana Dickey, PT, GCS, GTC, recently completed her Board Certification in Geriatrics by the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties (ABPTS). Dickey has worked in the St. Joseph Medical Center Outpatient Rehab clinic for ten years.
The specialization through the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties is a process by which a physical therapist builds on a broad base of professional education and practice to develop a greater depth of knowledge and skills related to a particular area.
Applicants must submit evidence of 2,000 hours of direct patient care in the specialty area within the last 10 years, 25 percent of which must have occurred within the last three years. A final exam is required that is designed to objectively measure the application of advanced knowledge and skills required of physical therapy clinical specialists. For Dickey, the process took over three years.
“I was very relieved when the whole process was over,” says Dickey. “It was very arduous and took up a lot of time, but I’ve learned a lot.”
Dickey obtained her Physical Therapy degree from Washington University in St. Louis and is currently working on her transitional D.P.T. (Doctorate of Physical Therapy) through the University of Montana.
In 2009, Dickey received her Geriatric Training Certification (GTC) through Great Seminars, a program that required the completion of 8 continuing education classes and a review course in Washington DC.
St. Joseph Medical Center is an acute care facility of Carondelet Health (CarondeletHealth.org) which also includes St. Mary’s Medical Center, three long-term care facilities and home care services. Carondelet Health is dedicated to the healing ministry of Jesus Christ. Our commitment to human dignity compels us to provide compassionate, quality healthcare for body, mind and spirit, with a special concern for the poor. We are responsible stewards serving the needs of all people from conception to death. Carondelet Health is a member of Ascension Health, the nation’s largest Catholic and nonprofit health system.