The use of simulation labs has become the status quo for education and training in healthcare professions, and it has emerged as a discipline with well-documented, evidence-based research and is recognized as a viable option to augment clinical practice experiences.

With the implementation of a new and improved simulation lab, Lewis College students will have access to more space and modern equipment to enhance their healthcare education. With trained simulation teams guiding and assisting students in the lab, students will receive improved, multi-faceted training that will push them to their full learning potential. As a result, Lewis College produces healthcare professionals who have more holistic healthcare experience and who are fully prepared to enter their field.

As the first public institution in the state of Georgia to receive approval to grant the Doctor of Physical Therapy degree, Georgia State University is continuing its longstanding tradition of raising the academic bar. The mission of the Department of Physical Therapy in the Byrdine F. Lewis College of Nursing and Health Professions is to prepare students of physical therapy who are committed to clinical excellence, professional distinction, and the pursuit of scholarly activities that contribute to the body of scientific and clinical knowledge. The department considers research to be an essential part of the Doctor of Physical Therapy learning experience and the key to ensure successful implementation of evidence-based practice. Therefore, in 2019 construction began on new, state of the art teaching and research lab spaces. Now there is an exciting opportunity to leave a legacy at Georgia State by naming one of these new research and learning spaces.

This new research and learning space are all located on the ground floor in our new student center west building with walking and ramp access to Decatur street.  Our new PT faculty practice and wellness clinic is also located on the same floor as the research labs so that we can provide our patients and students easy access to these research facilities. Here is the floor plan of our research and learning space.

This on-campus PT and wellness clinic allows faculty to offer expert care, maintain their skills, and train students while providing community service. The Georgia State Physical Therapy and Wellness Clinic offers expert physical therapy consultations, evaluations, and interventions to anyone with accepted insurance plans for musculoskeletal and neuromusculoskeletal problems affecting function. We offer an array of specialized services, including a state-of-the-art computerized gait analysis.  We also have clinicians certified in dry needling and manual therapy techniques including manipulation.  Our providers are certified specialists in orthopedics, sports, neurology, pediatrics, and geriatrics. Many of our providers specialize in working with patients with musculoskeletal injuries of the extremities, spine problems, chronic pain, injured athletes, injured workers, and patients with neurological insults and degenerative conditions. Practice providers also perform gait evaluations. All providers adhere to the Ethical Code of Conduct and Standards of Practice of the American Physical Therapy Association and to Georgia State bylaws, and conform to the scope of practice and licensure laws and regulations for physical therapy practice in Georgia.

The Biomechanics and Motor Control Laboratory in the Department of Physical Therapy at GSU is a 3000 sq. ft. facility dedicated to the investigation of human movements associated with neuromuscular injuries and disorders with the goal of developing effective interventions and improving quality of life for patient populations, including individuals with cerebral palsy, ACL injury, knee osteoarthritis, or other lower extremity disorders.

The key equipment and resources of the BMCL at GSU are as follows:

• A 9-camera (T-series) Vicon motion capture system
• Two AMTI Optima force platforms
• Delsys wireless (16 IMU sensors) and wired EMG systems
• A Kin-Com dynamometer
• Portable ultrasound imaging units
• A GAITRite portable gait analysis system
• An 8-sensor APDM Mobility Lab system
• High-performance workstations and software

The spinal physiology lab is a 600sq ft research space dedicated to understanding how the central nervous system regulates sensorimotor function and on developing interventions to supplement lost function especially after musculoskeletal and neurological injury.  The laboratory researches cutting edge interventions to electrically stimulate an injured spinal cord in order to restore its function, and thereby restoring function and mobility in individuals who have had a spinal cord injury.

The laboratory also researches osseointegrated prostheses to improve function after amputation in animal models, with a potential to translate it to human subjects.  The spina physiology laboratory has state of the art wireless EMG system that can assess muscle innervation and function.  The laboratory also has technology to assess transmission of electrical signals within the brain and spinal cord’s motor pathways, which can be used to assess the function of these pathways.