Rowen Sensenig – Physical Therapy Internship

Hello, my name is Rowan Sensenig. I am an intern at NovaCare physical therapy. This is a great opportunity for me as I plan to further my education in the medical field and pursue a major in sports medicine. NovaCare gives me lots of different great learning opportunities that will later be very useful in college and out in the workforce once I graduate college. Although PT is not exactly like sports medicine, it is very close. I would like to be working with younger athletes and getting them back to 100% as soon as possible so they can get back to whatever sport they are playing.

I go to my internship on 4 of the 5 school days, for around 2 hours each time. Some of the tasks that I complete daily are cleaning tables and making sure everything is sanitary for the next patient. I also get heat and stim or ice and stim for patients, applying it to them and taking it off. I get to walk patients through exercises, which not only teaches them something but also teaches me something. I have also gotten to experience land exercises versus water exercises. It depends on the patient and what will work best for their recovery. From time to time when we are slower I ask what I can do around the place, and sometimes that may be paperwork, filing, etc. but it is all part of being a PT.

Patients come in and are usually there for an hour or so, a patient’s day might consist of different exercises, stretching, heat/ice, and stim. It all depends on where they are in their recovery process and what will get them back to being fully healthy the quickest and safest. It is very important to create conversation with patients, it makes them feel welcome and helps them realize they are in a safe environment where they can be themselves. It is also essential to be careful when working with patients and always be attentive, for example, if somebody is at fall risk you always want to be close and on your toes while they do an exercise just in case they would lose footing.

In conclusion, I really enjoy the time I get to spend at NovaCare and I’m very grateful for this opportunity given to me. It prepared me for college and my future.  It is also a great way to see if this is what I want to be doing for the rest of my life. I am excited to finish off the semester and continue to learn and put to practice what I have learned.