Related service providers are our right and left hands. They help us create the holistic environment that school should be for our often complex students! While physical therapy is not the most common related service, it’s one that many of our students receive and that teachers must know more about! Today we have some incredible insights from the amazing Marissa Heilig, who is a school based Physical Therapist. Let’s see what we can glean from her expertise.
My name is Marissa, and I’m from Buffalo, NY. I graduated from the University at Buffalo’s Doctor of Physical Therapy program in 2018. I had the opportunity to complete two, full-time pediatric clinical rotations in this program. My first was at a school for students with disabilities receiving special education and multiple therapy services. I practiced daily interprofessional collaboration with teachers and therapists and had my first experience with IEPs, progress reports, annual reviews, and other school-based elements. My second was a mixture of outpatient therapy for preschoolers and school-based services as an independent contractor in large public school systems. This experience taught me how to stay organized, be creative, and prioritize communication. I frequently saw other members of the child’s team for only a few minutes per week, if at all. Since graduation, I’ve worked with children of all ages and abilities in public and private schools, daycares, and home-based services. I currently work at a special education preschool in New York City.
Navigating the school system as a physical therapist
Of the “Big 3” related therapy services (PT, OT, Speech), physical therapy is by far the least common service. This might mean we have to travel a lot and divide our time broadly to fill our caseloads. It was common for me to travel to up to four different schools in one day. It was difficult remembering the routines and rules of each location, but I enjoyed the breaks in my day. It can also be difficult to build relationships when you’re moving around so frequently. At my current school, I have the ability to build stronger relationships with my classrooms since I am in the same building all day. I enjoy being involved in classroom events like holidays and spirit activities. I feel like a true part of the team and the kids love when I can talk to them in our sessions about what is going on in their class.
Communicating within special education teams
Email is the best way for me to communicate with the teams I am part of. Sometimes it is possible for me to quickly speak with a teacher or other therapist in passing in the hallway, but I find that information can be quickly forgotten this way. Almost all of the schools I have worked in had some type of regular meeting schedule where we would set aside 15-20 minutes once per month or quarter by phone, Zoom, or in-person to discuss student progress. If the meeting overlapped with something of higher priority, I would send a written update to the counselor or teacher to be shared on my behalf with the team. I also like to update the team via email when there is something new within my sessions, whether it be achievement of a goal or something of concern.
Healthcare meets special education
Something I wish teachers and school systems knew about physical therapy providers is that the physical therapy scope of practice is really broad, and we are healthcare professionals first. We may be limited within school systems to stick to educationally-based goals, but internally our brains are often working beyond that. We love to be challenged and bring our skillset to team collaborations that support students across school, home and community environments.
Making it work for kids
If I could change one thing about the school system to facilitate meaningful collaboration between teachers and therapists, it would be having more flexibility and autonomy for providing services. IEPs are essential legal documents that ensure students receive the services they are entitled to, but sometimes they limit where we can provide services, the duration of service and certain activities. Sometimes co-treatments (where two or more therapy providers work with a student at the same time) are prevented or discouraged. These types of sessions can be super beneficial for kids and their educational team, I love being a part of them when I can!
Stay in touch!
You can find me on Instagram @pediatricphysicaltherapy where I offer free mentorship, insight into school-based PT life, and general pediatric PT knowledge.