Movement System Foundations | Application To Women’s and Pelvic Health Practice

3 Contact Hours

The American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) officially adopted the language of the “movement system” in 2013, with a white paper published in 2015 supporting the definition and understanding of the movement system in physical therapy. As this important concept continues to grow throughout the profession, it is of utmost importance that pelvic and women’s health physical therapists have an approachable understanding of how exactly to apply the concepts of the movement system and movement diagnoses in their practice. Additionally, as pelvic therapists, we continue to recognize the importance of a whole-body approach, and this course will provide a systematic framework in order to strategically assess the patient as a whole (and not just their pelvic floor). This 3-hour online pre-recorded webinar will be the foundation of a series of courses devoted to teaching the learner the movement system framework, diagnoses, and applications for treatment in women’s and pelvic health.

• Understand the Human Movement System, the importance of this concept in physical therapy practice, the role of PTs/PTAs as movement experts, and how to promote this within their practice and community
• Describe the concepts of relative flexibility, stiffness versus shortness
• Understand the importance symptom monitoring, a standardized movement examination, weight of examination items, and how to perform secondary tests
• Use the findings of a movement examination to determine the patient’s primary movement diagnosis
• Develop a treatment plan that is directly related to the patient’s primary movement faults/patterns that will provide a well-rounded approach to their care

Karla Wente, PT, DPT, CLT, Board-Certified Women's Health Clinical Specialist

Karla Wente is a Doctor of Physical Therapy and Women’s Clinical Specialist, graduating from Washington University in St. Louis Program in Physical Therapy in 2013. She completed her Clinical Residency in Women’s Health with a focus on application of the movement system in 2014. She has practiced in private practice for most of her career throughout Chicagoland (her hometown), and has focused in evaluation and treatment of males, females, and children with pelvic health conditions. She also loves to treat orthopedic conditions from a movement system approach, and loves treating older adults. In addition to her pelvic floor specialization, she loves education and has served as the Educational Review Committee chair for the Academy of Pelvic Health, earning her Volunteer of the Year from the Academy at Combined Sections Meeting in 2020. She loves all things patient education, teaching, clinical instruction, and mentorship and has served in a variety of capacities in all of these roles. She has also recently started PhysioSage, which is dedicated to promoting physical therapists as patient educators.

When she is not geeking out about physical therapy, she loves to do yoga, write and make music (she plays 6 instruments!), go for long walks with her husband, and spend lots of time cuddling her two cats, Meeper and Sarabi.

Theresa "Tracy" Monaco Spitznagle, PT, DPT, MHS, Board-Certified Women's Health Clinical Specialist 

Theresa Monaco Spitznagle PT, DPT, Board-Certified Women's Health Clinical Specialist is currently a Professor in the Program in Physical Therapy at Washington University in St Louis. Over the past 25 years Tracy has focused her clinical practice on the treatment of patients with fecal and urinary incontinence, painful bladder syndrome, pelvic pain, dyspareunia, and pregnancy-related lumbo-pelvic pain. Professional contributions that Tracy has made include, the development of a post-doctoral fellowship training program for Pelvic health Physical therapy, Chair of the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialist’s, Board member of the Worldwide Fistula Fund and a founding board member of the Global Women’s Health Initiative.

Through her involvement in international organizations Tracy has developed an expertise in treating patients with obstetric fistula as well as providing capacity building for Physical Therapy Education in Ethiopia. Publications include topics associated with; capacity building in Ethiopia, chronic pelvic pain, diagnosis for pelvic floor conditions; diastasis recti abdominis; movement related urinary urgency; and physical examination of the pelvic floor muscles. Dr Spitznagle’s research activities have resulted in presentations at multiple professional meetings including; the American Urogynecological Society Conference and the American Physical Therapy Association’s Combined Sections Meeting, World Congress of Physical Therapy, World Congress on Low back and Pelvic Pain and the International Pelvic Pain Society.