October | 2026 | Acute Conversations

Show Notes:

What manual therapy skills could you bring back into your next acute care session? In this episode of Acute Conversations, hosts Dr. Leo Arguelles and Dr. Nicole Neveau welcome Dr. Rebekah Griffith, the ED DPT; Chris White, director of ancillary services at University of Colorado Hospital; and Eric Folmar, an associate clinical professor at Northeastern University.

Together, they explore how foundational manual therapy skills fit into hospital-based physical therapy. Rebekah shares examples from acute care and the emergency department, connecting pain and movement restrictions with the functional tasks patients need to perform. Eric brings an educator’s perspective on applying familiar skills across settings, while Chris discusses teamwork, service delivery and communicating the value of skilled intervention to hospital leaders.

The conversation returns to clinical reasoning: identifying what is limiting a patient, considering why, choosing an appropriate response and involving colleagues when needed. The guests also discuss refreshing skills, sharing knowledge across a team and helping others understand the range of care physical therapists provide.

For acute care PTs, PTAs and students, this episode offers a reason to revisit the skills already in your clinical toolbox—and consider where they belong in your practice. Listen now on Apple or Spotify.

Today’s Guests:

Dr. Rebekah Griffith, the ED DPT

rgriffithdpt@gmail.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rebekah-griffith-rgthedpt/

X: @theeddpt

IG: @theeddpt

Chris White PT, OCS, MBA

Director of Ancillary Services University of Colorado / APTA Colorado Vice President

cdwhite1331@gmail.com

Eric Folmar PT, DPT, OCS

Guest Quotes:

4:45 Rebekah “And one thing that I wanted to appeal to people with this conversation was if you’re a manual therapy specialist, you don’t only have to work in an outpatient clinic, right? There’s so many places for you to use that skill set, that critical thinking, that cyclical decision-making. All of that needs to be in every area that we practice in. And I wanted to remind acute care therapists that you don’t leave your skill set at the door when you clock in, and you don’t put your scrubs on and forget all of those other skills.”

13:14 Rebekah “ …Their thoracic spine mobility is so limited they literally cannot sit up straight. They can’t balance. Their center of gravity is not manageable with the range of motion that they have. Doing some thoracic mobility decreases their pain, improves their lung function, gets their posture upright, improves their balance, and allows them to stand up and start moving.”

17:22 Chris “ So we wanna make sure that we’re doing those high level interventions from a top of scope practice standpoint that gets a patient to the right location. … And then those that need to be admitted, again, if you’re doing this stuff in the ED, and then they go up to the floor and the ED did this great manual technique that helped me,” and you’re not doing it on acute care, those things can extend length of stays as well.”

Hot Take: Rebekah “ My hot take is that physical therapists, especially in acute care, need to stop asking for permission- … and use their skillset.”

Rapid Responses:

Rebecca, do you have a walkout song?

“ Unstoppable by Sia.”

You know you’re working in acute care when…

Chris “ when you hear code browns being hollered over the loudspeaker.”

Eric “ the sounds don’t bother you.”

🎧 Connect with Our Hosts

Leo Arguelles (pronounced LEE-O R-GWELL-IS)

📧 largue2@uic.edu

🐦 Twitter: @LeoArguellesPT

Nicole Neveau, PT, DPT, NCS

📧 ngunder1@gmail.com

🔗 LinkedIn: Nicole Neveau

Danny Young, PT, DPT, PhD

📧 daniel.young@unlv.edu

🐦 X: @DLYoungDPTPhD

🌐 Bluesky: @dlyoungdptphd.bsky.social

🎧 Listen now on Spotify | Apple Podcasts

(Or wherever you get your podcasts)

#AcuteCare #PhysicalTherapy #HealthcareLeadership

Interested in being a future guest?

APTA Acute Care “Optimizing Recovery, Elevating Care”

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https://www.aptaacutecare.org/page/AspireandAchieveMentorshipProgram

Twitter @AcuteCareAPTA

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Instagram @AcademyAcutePT

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Show Notes:

What changes when you are no longer the student with a clinical instructor in the room? In this episode of Acute Conversations, hosts Dr. Leo Arguelles and Dr. Daniel Young welcome back Fiona Kearns and Mika Mendoza one year after their first appearance as students. Now practicing in acute care, they offer an honest look at the difference between being prepared and feeling prepared.

Fiona and Mika discuss taking ownership of full caseloads, managing time and priorities, navigating complex discharge needs, and finding their voices within interdisciplinary teams. They also share the hands-on experiences that shaped their growth, from line management, ICU mobility and safe patient handling equipment to vestibular assessment, emergency care and cardiovascular practice.

Throughout the conversation, both clinicians return to the same foundations: protect patient and clinician safety, know the basics, ask questions and keep learning. Their reflections also highlight the value of mentors and colleagues who create room for early-career clinicians to build confidence without pretending to have every answer.

This episode offers practical perspective for students, new graduates, clinical instructors and experienced clinicians supporting the next generation of acute care physical therapists. Listen now on Apple or Spotify.

Today’s Guests:

Mikhaela Mendoza PT, DPT

mikaimendoza21@gmail.com

Fiona Kearns, PT, DPT

fkkearns2000@gmail.com

Guest Quotes:

3:49 Mikhaela “ I just told myself that, I trust in what I know, and if you don’t know, you just ask the questions, that the goal is to never feel like you’re the expert right away. That’s not necessarily the most realistic. It’s to just know when to ask the right questions.”

6:59 Fiona “ When you become your own clinician, you have had all of this feedback, and then you can develop your own treating style based on what you’ve learned from being a student and just feel like you can relax into that a little bit more.”

Rapid Responses:

What’s the most challenging sort of patient that you get to work with in the hospital that pushes your limits the most?

Fiona: “ In terms of my brain limits, it’s definitely our intubated patients. Our… They just, you have to do… There’s so much monitoring, so much stuff that you’re thinking about beyond just them being intubated. Whatever, especially intubated strokes, I feel like those are the patients that they can be so unpredictable.

They can be so impulsive. Sometimes they’re going to pull their lines. You j- just, I feel like I come out of those rooms and I’m sweaty and my head hurts and I have to just stand and stare at the wall for a minute and, like- … pull myself together.”

If you’re on a nursing floor, what’s your go-to snack that you can find in the nurses station?

Mikhaela: “ Usually some sort of donut that they always bring ’cause- … I feel like people are always celebrating something. Or the graham crackers in the drawer. Those are always a staple.”