At this year’s American Physical Therapy Association Combined Sections Meeting, the largest Physical Therapy conference in the country, PT Program Director Margaret Schenkman, PT, PhD, FAPTA, delivered the Anne Shumway-Cook Lectureship.

The Anne Shumway-Cook lectureship is designed to acknowledge and honor an individual who has made a significant contribution to neurologic physical therapy research and practice. Recipients of the lectureship have distinguished themselves as an esteemed neurorehabilitation scientist whose work has influenced neurological physical therapist clinical practice. The lecture provides an opportunity for the honoree to share experiences related to the translation of neuroscience and neurorehabilitation research into neurological physical therapist clinical practice.

Speaking to a full house, Schenkman described her journey from microbiologist to rehabilitation scientist. She discussed the importance of conceptual frameworks in directing research and practice, the evolution of evidence for the role of physical intervention for people with Parkinson disease, and the evolution of emphasis from a focus on underlying impairments to an emphasis on participation of people who live with chronic disabilities.