79: Adventures in Limb Loss Care w/ Dr. Lauren Jones
Andy Wicks interviews Dr. Lauren Jones, a physical therapistat Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital (https://www.maryfreebed.com/) in Grand Rapids who has extensive experience working with patients with limb loss and limb difference. Jones describes launching west Michigan amputee soccer clinics through the United States Amputee Football Federation (https://amputeesoccer.org/) after connecting with the University of Michigan program, emphasizing grassroots access, student involvement, and pathways to national-team camps, including growing women’s competition. She also discusses Mary Free Bed Guild (https://www.maryfreebed.com/mary-free-bed-guild/)–supported trips to Guatemala City delivering about 30 prostheses in one week—from casting and fabrication to delivery and gait training—within an established clinic that provides follow-up care; mostamputations there stem from motorcycle trauma. Jones stresses finding mentors and close prosthetist collaboration, and advocates for a PT specialty certification in amputee care.
PTs and PTAs in Michigan! You can receive PDR credit towardlicense renewal by listening to Waves episodes! Download and complete the LARA General Response Form (chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://cdn.ymaws.com/aptami.org/resource/resmgr/documents/general_response_form_3_5075.pdf) and keep for your records.
00:00 Podcast Intro Guest Setup
00:41 Lauren Jones Background Role
01:43 Amputee Soccer Origins
03:32 Grassroots Program Expansion
04:13 How Amputee Soccer Works
05:31 Pathway To National Team
06:38 Medical Missions Overview
07:58 Guatemala Clinic Logistics
09:00 Prosthesis Week Workflow
11:31 Patient Impact Motivation
12:17 Why Missions Reignite Passion
14:20 Waiting Instant Gratification
16:12 Wheelchair Safety Net
17:20 Why Amputations Happen
17:38 Guatemala Trauma Reality
20:30 Teaching Future PTs
22:17 Working With Prosthetists
26:03 Need PT Specialty Credential
29:17 Take the Leap Abroad
30:40 Contact and Wrap Up
3 Aug 2026
78: PT and the Michigan Baby Boom w/ Aleysha Czartoszewski
Healthcare Workforce at the Brink: Baby Boomers Turn 80 andWhat It Means for Physical Therapy in Michigan
Host Andy Wicks discusses Michigan’s rapidly aging population—baby boomers turning 80, nearly 19.25% of residents over 65, and a nearly 30% rise in that group through 2023—and the resulting healthcare workforce shortfall. Guest Aleysha Czartoszewski, Career Pathways Coordinator at the Michigan Health Council (https://www.mhc.org/), explains the Council’s workforcefocus and her three-part series “Healthcare Workforce at the Brink (https://www.mhc.org/post/healthcare-workforce-at-the-brink-baby-boomers-turn-80),” highlighting simultaneous increased care demand and retirements. They note uneven provider distribution with rural North Michigan and the UP facing access gaps, limited local PT/PTA education options, and barriers like housing and paydifferences. The conversation covers efforts such as loan-repayment incentives, promoting geriatrics and prevention to help people age in place, improving student career exposure and clearer pathways, retaining staff after COVID-related burnout, and strengthening care coordination and patientnavigation; resources are available at mhc.org.
00:00 Michigan Is Aging Fast
01:05 Meet Michigan Health Council
02:11 Baby Boomers Turn 80
03:30 Urban vs Rural Shortages
05:34 Education Gaps and Incentives
09:40 Making Geriatrics Appealing
15:10 Pipeline Retention Coordination
22:10 Health Literacy and Navigation
26:15 Michigan Workforce Numbers
28:35 Soapbox Career Exposure
32:58 Resources and Wrap Up
Michigan PTs and PTAs! Fill out this form (https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/bpl/Physical-Therapy/Licensing-Info-and-Forms/PT-or-PTA-General-Response-Form.pdf) and save for your records for PDR credit toward license renewal just for listening to this episode!
A link to a directory (https://aptaapps.apta.org//accreditedschoolsdirectory/default.aspx?UniqueKey=29F9C7CA-BF30-4458-9936-8CE504D6FD71) of all PT and PTA programs, viewable by state.
The Career Pathway Tool (https://www.mhc.org/pathways) via Michigan Health Council.
12 Jun 2026
77: Travel Physical Therapy: Training, Taxes, Licensure & Life in Alaska (with Dr. Rachel Auer)
APTA Michigan’s Waves host Andy Wicks interviews Dr. Rachel Auer, a traveling physical therapist from Michigan and a Grand Valley State DPT (www.gvsu.edu/pt) graduate, about her nearly three years of travel PT across Michigan, Montana, Washington, Colorado, and currently Anchorage, Alaska. Auer explains she chose travel PT to explore the country and sample multiple practice settings, moving between acute care, inpatient/SNF, and outpatient to keep skills sharp. She addresses common misconceptions that travel jobs have poor training or are undesirable, noting her orientation experiences have generally been reasonable. She advises students to start by learning from travel therapy communities, talk with many travelers, and understand tax compliance around tax-free stipends, including consulting a travel-focused tax expert. She also discusses state licensure challenges without the PT Compact and shares outdoor adventures enabled by short-term contracts, while acknowledging frequent moves and housing shifts can be tiring and she may eventually return to Michigan.
Use the LARA PT or PTA General Response Form (https://www.michigan.gov/lara/-/media/Project/Websites/lara/bpl/Physical-Therapy/Licensing-Info-and-Forms/PT-or-PTA-General-Response-Form.pdf) to document listening to Waves episodes for your PDR license renewal credits!
www.aptami.org (https://aptami.org/page/Waves)
YouTube (https://youtube.com/@aptamichigan1944?si=vu76lSiJhTUo1IkG)
Who has been a guest on Waves
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Maria Valet
Monica Aho
Abby Flaminio
Lindsay Marquardt
Amie Stanton-Day
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20 ratings
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Podcast Authority Score: 57 / 100
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Engagement
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