Hannah Zajac, PT, DPT, NCS is a member of Central Vermont Medical Center’s Rehabilitation Services Department at 1311 Barre Montpelier Road.
The American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties (APTA) has named Hannah Zajac, PT, DPT a Neurologic Certified Specialist (NCS). Hannah is Vermont’s 2nd Neurologic Certified Specialist. The APTA established the specialist certification program to provide formal recognition for physical therapists with advanced clinical knowledge, experience, and skills in a special area of practice and to assist consumers and the health care community in identifying these physical therapists. Hannah completed a rigorous process for her Board Specialty Certification, including a post-professional residency with the Ohio State University Medical Center in neurologic rehabilitation.
Hannah completed her undergraduate and graduate work at the University of Montana, in Missoula Montana, where she attained her bachelors degrees in Health and Human Performance/ Exercise Science and her doctorate in physical therapy.
“Hannah is a tremendous asset to CVMC’s Rehabilitation Services Department,” noted CVMC President and CEO Judy Tartaglia. “A neurologic physical therapist treats a number of medical conditions that we know are present in the central Vermont population,” she continued.
The examination tests the application of advanced knowledge and physical skills including the following components: patient care, teaching, administration, communication and interpretation of research. In the United States only 8 percent of certified specialists are certified in neurology compared to more than 6,000 certified in orthopedics.
The medical conditions that may be treated by a neurologic physical therapist include (but are not limited to) the following: balance and vestibular disorders, congenital and acquired conditions of childhood (cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, genetic disorders), congenital and acquired conditions of adolescence and adulthood, cerebral vascular accident, traumatic brain injury, progressive disorders of the central nervous system, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson disease, Huntington’s disease, acute or chronic peripheral neuropathies (post-polio syndrome, Guillain-Barre syndrome), and spinal cord injury.
“The practice of physical therapy is moving toward specialization due to the breath of what we treat. I have always loved working with patients with neurologic issues and wanted to peruse specialization so I could offer the highest quality care and evidence based practice to my patients. I also thought working and living in a rural area, I may be able to offer something that patients otherwise would not have access to, ” said Ms. Zajac.