Neuro Residency and Fellowship Programs Prepare Future Physical and Occupational Therapists

The Physical Therapy (PT) Neurologic Residency and Occupational Therapy (OT) Neurologic Fellowship programs at TIRR Memorial Hermann have produced some of the leading practitioners in these vital specialties in the United States, with graduates placed both within the Memorial Hermann and at other top rehabilitation medicine hospitals nationally.

Since its inception in 2009, the PT neuro residency program has graduated 29 professionals. It is one of only 79 accredited PT neuro residency programs in the United States, and one of only six in Texas. The OT neuro fellowship program started in 2020 and has graduated eight professionals to date. It’s one of only 10 such programs accredited nationally and the only one in Texas.

Each program accepts two applicants annually, and both are one year in duration, running from July to July.

“The goal of these programs is to enhance the knowledge of our physical and occupational therapists of neurologic therapy and rehabilitation medicine services while they are actually immersed in clinical care and research,” explains Victoria M. Zegarrundo, PT, DPT, the director of clinical and professional development at TIRR Memorial Hermann. “The program has been developed based on TIRR Memorial Hermann’s four pillars, which are excellence in clinical care, advocacy, research and education.” 

In keeping with that mission, residents and fellows receive specialized mentorship from leading professionals in their respective fields who are “senior-level therapists and experts in their fields and have a passion for mentoring,” according to Dr. Zegarrundo. Residents and fellows also attend courses designed to “advance their clinical reasoning skills,” she adds.

According to Dr. Zegarrundo, what makes the TIRR Memorial Hermann program unique is that residents and fellows experience the full continuum of care. All begin the program by spending two and a half months in the system’s neuro trauma acute care unit, splitting the time between adult and pediatric patients. Next, they gain valuable experience in inpatient care, spending three months each with TIRR Memorial Hermann’s brain injury team and the system’s spinal cord injury team. Finally, they engage in outpatient rehabilitation for four months at TIRR Memorial Hermann’s Kirby Glen Center and the system’s Challenge program for community reintegration.

“Through our program, they have the opportunity to follow patients and understand their treatment journey,” explains Dr. Zegarrundo, who is just completing her first year in her current role. “We believe that, ultimately, this will make them better clinicians after they graduate.”

Another unique aspect of the programs is that residents and fellows get to participate in—and, in some cases, lead—groundbreaking research projects in their respective fields. They also coordinate “journal clubs” and in-service training sessions to review the latest evidence-based approaches.

“Patients are evaluated by the residents and fellows as well as the mentors in the program,” Dr. Zegarrundo says. “The residents and fellows will discuss cases with their mentors and ask, ‘What can we be doing differently or better, based on the research evidence?’ The programs really elevate the work of all the professionals involved.”

With that in mind, Dr. Zegarrundo hopes to expand both programs in the coming years to grow the number of residencies and fellowships and bolster the research initiatives. In addition to Dr. Zegarrundo, the programs are led by Laura Martin, PT, DPT, the residency director for the neurologic PT program, and Kathryn Nedley, OTD, OTR, ATP, the fellowship director for the neurologic OT program.

“We’re a nationally ranked hospital, and we love to see that we’re promoting best practices across the United States,” she explains. “It’s gratifying to see how much we are affecting PT and OT education, not only in the local community, but nationally.”

For more information, contact NeuroOT@memorialhermann.org.