CI of the Year

RU DPT Alumni Jay Coble PT, DPT, is a physical therapist at Riverside Regional Medical Center in Newport News, VA and was nominated by RU DPT student Aly Metz, class of 2020. When asked why she nominated Jay, Aly said, “He created a wonderful learning environment in which I could be myself, challenge my skill set, make mistakes and safely develop my clinical reasoning skills. He exemplifies what a physical therapist should be not only with his clinical actions but his thoughtful and caring nature. Jay is a great teacher that leads by example by constantly critiquing his own actions for the benefit of student learning. He always took the extra time to thoroughly explain advanced concepts to ensure my understanding and clinical application of the matter while providing me with ample research and outside resources. Jay pushed me to achieve more everyday with positive feedback and thought provoking discussions. I truly appreciated the extra time he spent with me daily and his dedication to the field of physical therapy.”  

When asked what motivates Jay to be a CI he stated “There are many motivations behind being a CI. First is I enjoy questioning why I do things the way I do so that I can better articulate to students why I do them. I enjoy introducing students to acute care and try very hard to show them the unique benefits of providing physical therapy in acute care/critical care. Lastly, I like giving back to the profession and hope to help develop students in other aspects of the PT practice, even if the student doesn't want to work in acute care. I would advise therapists who are considering becoming a CI to do so. I think it helps to foster many aspects of professional growth and it challenges the clinician to avoid complacency. Prior to becoming a CI I would suggest clinicians identify their strengths/weakness/biases. I think it works better to acknowledge those things when working with students, by being upfront regarding those topics the student/CI relationship has a better chance to be successful. 

Congratulations to Jay, and thank you for your commitment to educating future PTs and for your continued support of Radford University’s DPT program!