Personal Narrative: A Career In Physical Therapy

“It can be a hard job to go for, but if you work hard enough, you can accomplish anything,” Angie Kramer admitted, when being interviewed about her job as a physical therapist. While talking with her on the phone, I was informed of the dedication it takes to become a physical therapist and what should be expected in college. Mrs. Kramer is one of the few physical therapist at the Prairie Du Chien Memorial Hospital in Prairie Du Chien, WI, with over ten years of experience. To be qualified for entry into the physical therapy program of UW-La Crosse, she mentioned that a student needs to have a 3.5 g.p.a. or higher, harder classes taken will help in the long run, and experience and/or clinical hours shows dedication to the program. With Angie, …show more content…
Patient situations are almost never identical, so each plan of treatment is unique; however, sometimes patients don’t want to follow instructions. She can work with individuals for as long as needed, although it is up to that individual if they continue their home exercises. “It happens a lot,” Angie sighed, “People don’t want to do these exercises and then return to me angry because they’re not making progress. I tell them what they need to do, on the other hand, if they don’t want to listen I just inform them to come back when they’re ready.” People expect their recovery to be quick, whereas it might take months or even a year in some cases. She can only help people when they are in her office, she has no control over what they do at home. This can be frustrating to her, nevertheless she has to be understanding no matter the situation. For Angie, the ultimate measure of success is noticing that patients are improving, and if they’re able to move on with their daily lives. Out of all the experiences with patients, she stated that a young high school athlete who had become paraplegic was the most memorable for her to work with. Angie had been out of college for only a year when a young man with spinal injuries, due to a boating accident, came to her. He was frustrated, since he wanted to walk, and was uncooperative towards a treatment plan to regain strength. Only after realizing he would never walk again, did he take his therapy seriously, and he began to train for basketball. A few years later, as Angie was watching the news, he happened to be on television after winning a gold medal in the Paralympics. She felt joyful, knowing that she was able to help him in any way she could, and that he was able to move on to greater