Providing this personal statement for admission into an academic institution with the caliber of challenges, opportunities, and focus offered by your organization constitutes a critical benchmark in my career goal of becoming a professional physical therapist. Both a passion for academic excellence combined with an extensive background in science underpins the scholastic and pragmatic foundation of what my admission to your institution offers to the expectations of the quality of learner you provide admission.
Life experiences add to the impetus driving this goal of becoming a physical therapist. This interest in physical therapy began as a small boy with my belief in the magical power of doctors helping me breathe when afflicted with an attack of asthma. The severity of the breathing problem from the asthma meant I spent nearly half my childhood in the hospital. This experience came to my equating hospitals as a safe place where I could breathe. A realistic outcome of these events with asthma, hospitals, and doctors proved more sobering as my parents sought out a long-term end to my suffering.
This search involved changes to my diet eliminating such items as seafood. Due to the chance of contact with allergens and thus exacerbating any onset of an asthma attack, my outdoor activity also had many limitations. Despite these focused changes in my lifestyle the only positive outcome was the time I spent with a physical therapist. In these encounters, I learned the valuable application of the instruction by the therapist with a specific procedure prolonging exhaling by using my lips to breathe. Combining this with other therapeutic techniques using particular exercises increasing my lung activity proved beneficial. Continually, applying these applications over the next year enabled increased physical activity in my life and I spent less time in the hospital.
Another personal outcome of this therapeutic process brought an important understanding – an epiphany of sorts in my view of how physical well-being relies on the body’s healthy immune system. As a juvenile sufferer of acute Asthma, I learned the benefits of applying correct breathing therapy forever changing this debilitating aspect of my life for the better. Later as a teen with a painful sport injury, therapeutic physical therapy proved a positive experience in alleviating this major discomfort to my body as well.
This experience proved enlightening to the limits of medication in certain situations. Initially, my parents gave me some painkiller medication to thwart my discomfort with the ankle injury. This proved unsuccessful. With the decision to go to another physical therapist – this time for the ankle injury the outcome proved advantageous.
After the initial examination, the therapist decided to use electrical stimulation on the injured ankle for reducing the excruciating pain. This procedure included a massage for increasing the blood flow proving quite painful. Once the massage completed the therapist began 30-minute intervals of electrical stimulation. Like the memory of the magic of medicine I believed as that small boy, the pain magically reduced from a 10-point level down to a two, enabling walking on the ankle immediately after finishing the therapy. The profound effect of this on my psyche, my intelligence incurred my life desire taking on a momentum to make physical therapy as my career goal.
These rewarding and life changing experiences continues spurring this fervent desire reaching my professional goal to help bring a better quality of life to people as a physical therapist. The special interest I maintain in human physiology, the subjective understanding gleaned from developing a fit body as a runner, as a sports participant, and as a regular gym denizen aligns to health and the quality of life, a healthy body generates. This fact in my private experience proved so much so it culminated in the elimination of any signs of asthma afflicting my life for the past decade.
In the aftermath of these illuminating life incidents and moving forward, the ensuing years gave opportunities for volunteering and job shadowing working with physical therapy professionals in an outpatient care facility. The invaluable practicality of this adds to the growing understanding of this professional field of service. Observing and interacting in the physical therapy process with patients – some coming once, others twice weekly – provided applying empirical methodology as a learner in observing the amazing progress of their improved mobility and health with each ensuing visit to the clinic.
With job shadowing, the benefit of having the therapist completely explaining each step and purpose of the varieties of applied treatments brought a deeper understanding about muscle, nerves, and the physiological movements employed in the rehabilitation process with each patient. As a part of this learning, incorporating these same physical therapy procedures to my own body as a learning tool brought a logical value in contributing to building the connection between motion and muscle/nerve activity in the healing process. Understanding how the nearly 640 muscles of the human body respond to rejuvenation of the tissue through particular exercises meant more with the personal application on my own body. This also brought awareness that in this professional field choosing the correct exercise for the individual patient rehabilitation takes a highly developed ability.
Working with the inpatient physical therapy department volunteering proved invaluable with the opportunities for hands-on interaction with patients while assisting with walking exercises. This requires great care combined with calming patience so the therapy does not become an additional burden of stress on the patient. Imparting patience and confidence assisting the patient in walking therapies contributes to the healing process and underpins the desired competence needed in the physical therapy profession
Achieving my professional goal in completing the necessary academics also frames an understanding how communicating is part of the winning formula in helping others as a physical therapist. Thus, understanding the intrinsic benefits of communication skills linked to the goal of a physical therapist professional in effective rehabilitation relies on building trust, rapport, and confidence in the patient therapist relationship. The daily dedication as a therapist connected with instilling this same devotion within the patient looks at making my patients’ lives better through physical therapy.
As a responsible individual, one of the characteristics I possess defining me as a person, is to keep trying when faced with challenges, and never give up. This attribute reflects in the ongoing scientific research I participate with handling multiple projects. Research demands logic and ethics of accuracy of data requiring sacrifices including personal time. It is my core belief and ethic that effective physical therapy needs professionals willing to put their efforts into achieving patients’ health to the extent of sacrificing personal time to do so. Again, a physical therapist career is what my future holds and what I dedicate my efforts moving forward.
The biology major degree earned in 2011 establishes my solid foundation of knowledge in this scientific field. My senior year working at a molecular lab in Creighton University provided an abundance of hours in library and lab resulting in extensive study of scientific topics as well as the varieties of professional fields connected with particular areas of science and human physiological study. This interest came to fruition with developing and writing my senior thesis on human immune Cell B lymphocyte thus, further contributing to the growing body of knowledge within my academic foundation. With great enthusiasm of my future career, I continue immerging in studying all the courses related to physical therapy. This of course, includes biology, chemistry, physiology, anatomy, and physics; clinical courses that refer to patient care that consisting of cardiopulmonary resuscitation, long-term care-CNA, and psychology courses. With classes in Introduction to Psychology, Fundamentals of Abnormal Psychology, Human Growth, and Development the results provide additional insights to working with people in pain as applied to physical therapy rehabilitation precepts. In addition, completing a communication skills course contributes to the body of studies working with people.
I strongly assert a belief that scientific research does provide a strong fundamental background for any kind of clinical health care program including physical therapy. Creighton University extended the invitation joining as full time research lab technologist by the time I graduated resulting in work on three projects culminating in three completed journal papers. The anticipation of launching several upcoming well-designed projects supports my love of discovery led by the goal uncovering the hidden mystery of these scientific undertakings. Combining this pragmatic experience in scientific research with the body of academic work achieved reflects my dedication and unmatched enthusiasm for accomplishing my career choice becoming a physical therapist. As part, of your organization I see the outcome as a positive reciprocal experience for your institution and myself.
