Member Spotlight Rosa Elena Torres-Panchame PT, DPT St. John’s University, Assistant Program Director/ Director of Clinical Educatio/Assistant Professor in the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program
How Long have you been a member of APTA New York? I’ve been a member since 2001, which was the time I was a student beginning my entry-level degree. What do you enjoy most about APTA New York? I enjoy meeting and connecting with others, serving the membership, and being part of and learning about the processes that help create change in our profession. Tell us a little about your background, and how your path led you to where you are today. Like many other individuals, unexpected extraordinary opportunities and the courage to seize them are the background themes in the path that has led me to where I am today. I am one of six sister siblings, first-generation in mainland U.S. from parents who migrated from Puerto Rico in the 1950s. While my parents didn’t have much formal education, they instilled the value of education and hard work in hopes of a better life for their daughters. So, by the time it came to deciding to go to college, it was a no-brainer. Fortunately, I was awarded an undergraduate scholarship to attend Long Island University (LIU) in my hometown Brooklyn. Personally, and around the same time, my mother had been experiencing various orthopedic conditions that created pain and limited movement. Initially torn between a career in journalism and biological sciences, I decided on physical therapy to help others in similar situations as my mother, the goal being to empower them with the knowledge and understanding of their conditions to optimize the management of associated physical dysfunctions. After completing my BS/ MS in Physical Therapy degree from LIU Brooklyn, I immediately began to work at an outpatient orthopedic and sports physical therapy clinic. Despite my comfortability with managing the patient population, I recognized the need to have more experience and understanding of the acute hospital paths my patients often experienced. Therefore, I embraced this reflection and took a position with NYU Medical Center/ Rusk Institute, where I rotated the next few years through their hospital outpatient, acute care, and acute rehab settings. It was an amazing experience that challenged and prepared me to be a more well-rounded physical therapist. While returning to LIU Brooklyn in the evenings to complete my transitional DPT degree, an opportunity opened at the University’s on-campus outpatient physical therapy clinic. I spent the next 11 years at LIU in various capacities as staff physical therapist and clinic director, then later employed within the academic program APTA New York | January/February, 2022
25
