Good Shepherd's CMO Accepts Associate Chair

Phillip R. Bryant, DO

Phillip R. Bryant, DO, Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network's chief medical officer and senior vice president, medical affairs, was recently named associate chair for community rehabilitation programs for the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation at the University of Pennsylvania Health System (UPHS).

In this additional role, Bryant will perform the duties of a clinical professor as a member of the Associated Faculty at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School.

Bryant will continue in his role as chief medical officer of Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network, in addition to handling administrative and clinical duties for Good Shepherd Penn Partners, a recently announced partnership between Good Shepherd and UPHS. He serves as a liaison between the two organizations in the following areas: clinical programs, residency program rotations, technology advancements, and clinical research.

Bryant joined Good Shepherd in August 2005 after holding two positions at the University of Utah Health Sciences Center in Salt Lake City: Chair of the Division of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Medical Director of The Miner's Hospital and Miner's Clinic at the University of Utah. He also served as a member of the University of Utah Medical Group Executive Committee and chaired the University of Utah Medical Group's Clinical Outcomes Committee.

Visual Display for Aphasia Patients

DynaVox Technologies has announced the release of the Visual Scene Display communication framework for adults affected by aphasia and traumatic brain injury (TBI). The system uses the company's V and Vmax speech-output solutions.

The Visual Scene Display is part of a communication strategy that depicts people, activities, and objects in relation to one another, representing situations, places, or experiences in which all elements work to present a framework for conversation. This solution reduces the need to navigate between pages to retrieve vocabulary, thereby improving the communication experience. Contextually meaningful, custom photographs can be added to the framework to provide the individual with meaning and familiarity.

The new technology was developed under the leadership of David Beukelman, PhD, of the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, the University of Nebraska Medical Center, and Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Lincoln, and in collaboration with the Augmentative and Alternative Communication-Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (AAC-RERC).

"In the past, AAC devices were often used by individuals with aphasia or TBI for specific communication activities such as answering the telephone and basic communication functions such as greetings, prayers, jokes, etc," Beukelman says. "The Visual Scene Display framework provides a more robust communication experience and a more complete level of interaction support by allowing these individuals to navigate through the display and communicate messages using personal, contextual images rather than line drawings or icons."

"The digital photographs included in a Visual Scene Display provide a shared communication environment for individuals using AAC technology and their listeners," Beukelman adds. "Using personally relevant pictures with associated text, they can coconstruct messages and share socially relevant information."

"For the first time, individuals using advanced speech-output solutions challenged by communication disabilities resulting from aphasia and traumatic brain injury can take advantage of a powerful communication strategy grounded in solid clinical research," says Linnea McAfoose, MA, CCC-SLP, clinical product manager at DynaVox Technologies. "The Visual Scene Display adult communication framework gives those working to overcome the effects of these conditions a powerful base for meaningful communication and unprecedented flexibility for adding new content that is truly meaningful to their lives."

Altimate Medical Earns Two Governor's Safety Awards

The Altimate Medical team members proudly display their 2007 MHNSHARPS Award and Meritorious Achievement Award for excellence in workplace safety and health.

Altimate Medical, makers of the EasyStand® standing products, was recently awarded the 2007 MNSHARPS Award and the Meritorious Achievement Award for excellence in workplace safety and health. Altimate Medical is one of only two companies that have been in the MNSHARPS Program since 1998, earning eight safety awards in that time.

Altimate Medical was one of 23 companies to receive an MNSHARPS Award and one of 217 to receive the Meritorious Achievement Award at a May 11 awards luncheon in Minneapolis. Governor's Safety Awards are granted to employers with above average safety records.

"Our Safety Committee includes people from each department of Altimate Medical," says Steve Schmidt, safety coordinator at Altimate Medical "Together we strive to maintain a high level of safety to create a healthy working environment for our employees, while producing a quality product."

APTA Appoints New CEO

Effective July 16, John D. Barnes will succeed retiring Francis J. Mallon, Esq, as CEO of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). Barnes will make the move from his current Washington, DC, post as deputy executive director of the American Academy of Dermatology Association, a position he has held since 2005. He was the academy's associate executive director, government affairs & health policy, since 1999.

"We very much look forward to working closely with John," says APTA President R. Scott Ward, PT, PhD. "His approach is high-energy, results-oriented, and people-first. The APTA Board is confident that John's skills and abilities will help us to attain the goals we have set for the physical therapy profession by the year 2020."

The APTA's vision for 2020 includes positioning doctors of physical therapy, who may be board-certified specialists, as the exclusive providers of physical therapy. The plan also calls for cultivating legislation that will provide direct consumer access to physical therapists, eliminating current requirements for physician referral.

During his tenure at the academy, Barnes managed the development of an organizational strategic plan, established performance measurements, and led efforts to reorganize the academy using both 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(6) organizations to meet member needs, and coordinated key legislative strategies. He created the academy's State & Grassroots Affairs Department and the Science & Research Department, and he formed a Political Action Committee for the Academy.

Barnes also founded a permanent coalition of 12 specialty medical societies, the Alliance of Specialty Medicine, dedicated to coordinating federal lobbying efforts of Congress, the administration, and federal agencies. He is a member of the American Association of Medical Society Executives and the American Society of Association Executives. Barnes holds a BSBA degree in economics from Creighton University in Omaha, Neb, where he graduated in 1982.

The CEO search committee included Randy Roesch, PT, MBA, APTA vice president and committee chair; R. Scott Ward, PT, PhD, APTA president; Tim Lyons, PT, APTA treasurer; Babette Sanders, PT, MS, APTA secretary; John Wallace, PT, MS, OCS, APTA director; Jack Close, PT, MA, FAPTA; Joe Godges, PT, DPT, MA, OCS; Kathy Mairella, PT, DPT, MA; Craig Moore, PT; Diane Waldner, PT; and Nancy White, PT, MS, OCS.

The full Board of Directors made the final decision.