APTA’s CSM Preview: Must-attend Guide

The biggest gathering of physical therapists in the world is the annual American Physical Therapy Association Combined Sections Meeting. Known within the profession as CSM, it brings together more than 17,000 physical therapists from more than thirty countries for almost a week each winter for a week.

With programming from 18 specialty sections and academies, 1,000+ poster sessions and more than fifty pre-conference courses, there is a lot to sort through for your CSM itinerary.

Here are seven things you can’t miss as a geriatric physical therapist if you want to get the most out of your CSM 2020 experience.

OPENING CEREMONY AND RECOGNITION OF NEW BOARD-CERTIFIED SPECIALISTS

Wednesday, February 12, 2020
3:00 pm-7:00 pm
Colorado Convention Center, Denver, CO, Bellco Theatres 1, 2, and 3

The recognition of newly certified specialists starts your conference off on the right foot. You are immediately in the company of colleagues, friends, and acquaintances (many of whom will become friends and mentors later in your career). You also have an opportunity to hear from those currently leading the physical therapy profession within APTA.

In 2019, 2,750 practicing physical therapists became board-certified clinical specialists. These are clinicians who decided to dedicate themselves and their time toward clinical excellence. Seeing them and talking to them can help start you on a similar journey. Twenty-five FOX clinicians are included in this year’s group of newly board-certified geriatric clinical specialists (GCS), which is 7% of all new GCSs in the country!

YOUR APPROACH TO PROGRAMMING

Choosing from more than 300 educational sessions over three days can be overwhelming. Here are tips for selecting which sessions to attend:

• Don’t wait until the last minute: You can go to www.apta.org/CSM/programming right now to start getting a handle on the offerings. You have the option to search by day, section, type of session (i.e. educational vs. platform) and speaker.
• Use the app: The APTA Conferences & Events app allows you to manage your on-site conference experience. The personal scheduler is helpful along with real-time updates to your phone. This way if there’s a room change for a presentation, you won’t be late for the session you’re looking for.
• Focus on the speaker then topic and less about section: Many educational sessions have catchy names that may tell you very little about the content of the actual presentation. We have all gone to a presentation that sounded wonderful only to find out it wasn’t really about what we believed. For that reason, look at sessions by speaker first, then topic and then by section. Selecting a presentation by a speaker who’s quality you have already assessed and know that you are interested in, increases the likelihood that the material will be of interest to you. Too many attendees only attend sessions within a specific section, which doesn’t allow you to expand your thoughts and ideas.

BREAKFAST OF CHAMPIONS AND CAROLE LEWIS LECTURE

It’s difficult to properly recognize 2,750 people at the same time. Fortunately, for those willing to get up early on Friday, the Academy of Geriatric Physical Therapy hosts all new GCSs and Academy members for a congratulatory breakfast and recognition ceremony which provides an opportunity to network and gain insight about the board-certification process.

Immediately following, you get to hear from this year’s Carole B. Lewis Lecturer Dr. Dale Avers.

The Academy of Geriatric Physical Therapy created the Carole B. Lewis Lecture Award in 2019 to promote discussion of challenging issues, advocacy, and leadership in geriatric physical therapy. The lecture is held annually during the APTA’s combined sections meeting. This year Dr. Dale Avers will be the honored lecturer. We asked her for a preview of what her lecture will focus on.

“We can be better about establishing the value of what we do for older adults and therefore, for society. And I am setting forth five, what I call, exemplars, that I feel geriatric physical therapists should always do and in doing that, I hope that we will achieve some consistency which is going to equate to value because then our consumers are going to know what to expect from us and society will know what to expect from us. There is a lot of inconsistency in therapy. Frankly, half of the patients that you see in outpatient settings, in acute care, are older adults. And yet most therapists don’t think of themselves as geriatric physical therapists. And may not think about the skills that it takes to treat an older adult well. And so, these exemplars are really for everyone who’s treating an older adult.”

APTA COMPONENT SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS

When attending CSM for the first time, it is easy to feel overwhelmed looking at the programming. An opportunity that may go unnoticed is the special interest group meetings. In the face of presentations by big-name presenters, these sessions may not seem like the first place you’d spend your time. But don’t let this fool you.

These special interest group meetings are an excellent opportunity to meet clinicians of similar interests and find opportunities to get involved. At a group meeting, you will hear about the projects the group is working on and how you can get involved. This can turn into a chance to get to know people in your area of interest, gain new knowledge, and start to have an impact beyond what you do at work each day.

Each time you attend one of these meetings it gives you a chance of making a new connection with a colleague. These are great places to gain a new perspective you might not have come to on your own.

DPT STUDENTS GERIATRIC RESIDENCY PASSPORT PROGRAM

This is an exciting event for DPT students to meet the directors of geriatric physical therapy residency programs at CSM 2020 during exhibit hall hours. The goal is to encourage post-professional development for DPT students by exploring options of what is next after graduation.

Interested physical therapy students can visit the Academy of Geriatric Physical Therapy Booth in the CSM 2020 Exhibit Hall. You’ll also have the opportunity to enter into a raffle drawing. Simply talk to two residency directors and have your passport validated to enter into a drawing for one of several gift cards.

HOW TO CREATE NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES

CSM is an exciting time when the who’s who of the physical therapy world get together to share ideas and learn from one another.

As a clinician attending for the first time, it can be hard to know how to reach the people you would like to interact with. Attending a lecture from your PT idols can be inspiring, but approaching that speaker can be nerve-wracking. While our “PT famous,” colleagues are well known, bright, and busy, they are also people just like you. At one point in time, they were a new graduate who was nervous and looking for inspiration in the field.

Many of them sought inspiration from the leaders in the field and followed in their footsteps. I have had the opportunity to interact with many of PT celebs and have found that they value the opportunity to interact with everyday clinicians like us. Newer clinicians are the future of the profession and critical to forging our profession’s path forward. Leaders in the field know this and see the need to help develop the leaders of tomorrow.

After a lecture, there is often a line to ask a question or to discuss a point. When approaching a speaker know what you want to say and have a thoughtful question. This will often lead to a conversation that inspires the next steps, develops a relationship, and can even lead to mentorship opportunities. If that speaker does not share your area of interest or your perspective, they will often know a leader in the field who does. Take the opportunity at CSM to seek out these interactions. Step out of your comfort zone and to walk away inspired.

WHAT IS A PLATFORM PRESENTATION AND WHY SHOULD I ATTEND?

If you have never attended CSM or even if you have gone year after year, you may have never attended a platform presentation. When reviewing CSM content they don’t necessarily draw your attention because they require an extra click to get the details. Behind that additional click is a great opportunity to hear about studies and projects going on around the country.

Each platform presentation is only a few minutes long. This allows you to hear about a variety of new information in a short amount of time.

They also often take place in a smaller forum where it is easier to approach the presenters and learn more. This setting is great for being able to hear opinions from leaders in physical therapy in a more conversational setting. Platforms show a clear connection between high-level research and case study examples. This will give you a well-rounded view of important topic areas.

This year at CSM a health policy platform presentation will share current research and perspectives applicable to health policy physical therapy practice. This session may present both scientific and/ or clinically-oriented topics to promote physical therapy practice and ongoing research initiatives.

Want more? Listen to FOXcast here: FOXcast PT: Get the most out of your CSM 2020 experience.