Speaker: Mark Richards, MS PT, BA PT, CEEAA
Contact Hours: 7 contact hours (MN BPT Cat. 1)
Location: Methodist Hospital
Directions will be sent to participants one week prior to the course

About This Course

Reimbursement and regulatory challenges make the provision of therapy more challenging than ever. How does one employ evidence-based treatment principles when there seems to be less and less time to treat patients? And, on top of that, deliver expected, superior clinical outcomes? Whether you work in home health, outpatient, skilled nursing, a rehab center, or acute care, this course provides the information to help you enhance your strength exercise treatments in a clinically realistic and practical way.  

Muscular weakness in aging adults is effectively treated when using the proper exercise protocols. Unfortunately, many therapists use strength exercise approaches that are not research-based, resulting in sub-par patient strength gains. This heavily evidence-based seminar will provide you with the information needed to deliver safe and highly effective optimal strength exercise to aging adults. The course is designed to enable you to immediately and efficiently incorporate the learned material into your treatments to help you get great treatment results!

Course Objectives

• Recognize why physical weakness in the elderly is a serious issue and understand the strength building principles essential to counteracting weakness.
• Defend the capabilities of the elderly to gain strength as a result of performing optimal resistance exercise.
• List the advantages, limitations, and practical considerations of various strength-building methods.
• Recognize and appreciate the indications, precautions, and contraindications when strengthening patients with common medical diagnoses.
• Determine vital sign guidelines in relation to precaution, termination, and exclusion from participation from heavy exertion.
• Explain optimal resistance training parameters and the rationale for each.
• Discuss the importance of accurate record keeping and proper documentation of therapy patients. 
• Apply optimal strength exercise protocols in an efficient and effective manner.

Course Schedule

8:00 – 8:30am                  Registration

8:30 – 9:15am                  The Evidence: Average Strength Losses
9:15 – 9:45am                  The Evidence: Reversing Muscle Strength Loss
9:45 – 10:00am                The Evidence: Benefits of Strength Exercise
10:00 – 10:15am              Break
10:15 – 11:00am              Strengthening exercise methods

11:00 – 12:00pm              Diagnostic-specific strengthening research
12:00 – 1:00pm                 Lunch
1:00 – 2:30pm                   Diagnostic-specific strengthening research (cont’d)
2:30 – 2:45pm                   Break
2:45 – 3:00pm                   Exercise and vital sign guidelines

3:00 – 3:45pm                   Real Strength Exercise: Optimal strength training parameters
3:45 – 4:15pm                   Putting It Into Practice: Documentation and Case Studies
4:15 – 4:50pm                   Demonstration and Lab
4:50 – 5:00pm                   Final Questions & Answers and wrap-up
5:00pm                               Adjourn

Speaker Biography

Mark Richards, MS, PT, CEEAA received his B.A. in Physical Therapy in 1980 from the College of St. Scholastica, in Duluth,
Minnesota and his M.S. in Physical Therapy from the University of Minnesota in 1997. His thesis involved strength exercise for skilled nursing therapy patients. He has 33 years of varied clinical experience in orthopedics, sports medicine, and geriatrics and has strived to incorporate evidence-based therapy and exercise research into wide-spread clinical practice. He has been employed at corporate levels for various U.S. companies including NovaCare, Marriott Senior Living Services, Aegis Therapies, and Accelerated Care Plus. In those roles he has developed and managed clinical programs including, but not limited to, strength exercise, wellness, orthopedics, and physical agent modalities. He is currently employed as Vice President of Clinical Services for Accelerated Care Plus, Reno, Nevada. He also serves as a consultant for Welcyon, a franchise ‘fitness after 50’ company as Vice President of Program Development. Mark has presented numerous times at state and national level therapy and health care conferences including American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) National Meetings, APTA Combined Section Meetings, and is a faculty member for the APTA Section on Geriatrics, Exercise Expert for Aging Adults certification program. He is also on the faculty of Education Resources, Inc.

Registration Information