With one week to go in my clinic this means a few things... I have to finish up my inservice and make it real good... I soon have to go back to sitting in a classroom for hours on end, which is not nearly as interesting as treating patients... and I can dedicate my time in even more extracurricular areas such as getting more involved with the APTA, speaking of which here is a great speech I heard at the House of Delegates this year all is described below, but before you read that here is an abbreviation that threw me for a loop when looking at a chart earlier today:

NSVD x4 - Normal Spontaneous Vaginal Delivery... meaning the pt. had 4 kids without having to have a c-section or other complications when giving birth to her children...

HELEN HISLOP’S COMMENTS June 21, Page 198

The following comments were made by Dr Helen Hislop at the 2006 House of Delegates on Wednesday, June 21, during discussions the use of the title “Doctor” by physical therapists.

The first thing I would like to say, that as a profession, we have a duty to honor every member of this profession regardless of what degree they may hold. And I personally honor every BA, every MA of any kind as well as the new DPT's. And not to do that is to create tension and contention. So, having said that, I want to speak against the general motion of grandfathering anyone into anything. Or even grandmothering. I think these are, it's no use in my mind, dealing with illusions and make believes. We must look at history and the facts. The world is much too dangerous for anyone to be able to afford to nurse illusions. We must look at the realities. And the realities of our illusion is that to offer a pretend PT or a purchased DPT, each without substance, is to write our obituary in the annals of professionalism. To imagine that anyone can take ownership of an empty DPT without the scholarship that is embedded in each or in substantive earned degree, is an event so outlandish as to assure our dropping out of any dream of joining the major health professions, with similar standards, and similar ethics. Our present status is tenuous and even a little tragic. But I don't want to speak to you in anger for that is just establishing more contention. What I speak to you about is the very soul of physical therapy. An Association such as ours, without a conscience, is an Association without a soul. An Association without a soul is one that cannot live or survive. Every one who can recognize history knows when it happens. Everyone can recognize history after it happens. But it's only the wise people who knew the moment of what is vital, what is permanent, what is lasting and what is memorable. And our history, past, present and future lies in the quality of our education and our attempt to get to where we want to be.