1. Building Professionalism & ePortfolio
Dr. May Tom PT/DPT
Assistant Professor/ACCE
LaGuardia Community College

2. Professionalism
The competence or skill expected of a professional– Oxford Dictionary

3. Professional identity is the result of a developmental process that facilitates individuals to reach an understanding of their profession in conjunction with their own self-concept, enabling them to articulate their role, philosophy, and approach to others within and outside of their chosen field - Brott & Myers, 1999, Smith & Robinson, 1995

4. LaGuardia Community College Physical Therapist Assistant Program
ePortfolio is used to develop professionalism and a student’s professional identity from the pre-clinical stage of their education to the clinical stage of their education

5. Pre-Clinical Phase - Health Science First Year Seminar
In addition to assisting the student develop successful academic skills and tools for college & a career in healthcare, the students are introduced to developing a personalized professional ePortfolio
About Me

7. Clinical Phase – Physical Therapist Assistant Program
Utilizes ePortfolio to facilitate reflection as an integral part of a student’s learning experience. The PTA students are prompted to assess their developing professional identity based on their academic, co- curricula activities (community & academia), their emerging knowledge of the physical therapy field, the professional organization and clinical experiential activities at pivotal points in the program.

8. Clinical Phase – Physical Therapist Assistant Program
LaGuardia PTA Program Mission Statement
APTA Valued Behaviors - PTA
Assisting you to become a Lifelong Learner & Critical Thinker who has found ways to develop and grow as a result of formal schooling and has a range of commitments and interests of which you can become passionate.
Assisting you become Socially Responsible and giving back to your community.
Ensuring you possess a Global & Intercultural Understanding and understand how to interact with people of various cultures and backgrounds.
Assisting you to become an educated person who has fully explored his/her interests, strengths and skills and has exhibited a Career Readiness as a Promoter of Health and Wellness.
Preparing you in a Leadership role within your community.
To promote Compassion and Caring
Altruism
Caring & Compassion
Continued Competence
Duty
Integrity
PT/PTA Collaboration
Responsibility
Social Responsibility

9. Mission Statement/Professional Identity

11. Mission Statement Reflection
The PTA students continue to share their learning experiences on ePortfolio by connecting and reflecting on their previous course work with current classes and their participation in their clinical experiential learning as a PTA student
Review their Mission Statement where the students stated their reasons, their influences and their values for choosing the profession of physical therapist assistant

12. Mission Statement Reflection
Sample Prompts
Has the education process and your clinical experiential learning changed your perception of your career path?
Has your professional mission statement taken a different direction?
Do you still have the same ideals and goals as you did when you entered the program?
What have you learned about yourself as a healthcare provider ?
What areas do you think you still need to improve?

14. Summary
ePortfolio can assist the student in monitoring their journey towards a healthcare profession, clearer understanding of themselves and their role in the profession
ePortfolio can transform the students academic and clinical learning experience into meaning; in this process faculty will have a clearer understanding of the student & will be able to offer more meaningful advisement & guidance
ePortfolio can be a stepping stone for the student to further their academic career
Build success, professionalism and a professional identity

15. Joanne Paulino, PTA Edward Kollar, SPTA Paul Perolini, SPTA
Acknowledgements
Joanne Paulino, PTA Edward Kollar, SPTA Paul Perolini, SPTA

16. Thank You Questions ??