TULSA, Okla. — Tulsa Community College is making it easier to connect the community with free health resources.
They’ve launched a brand new website so patients can sign up for their physical therapy clinic and other clinics.
11-year-old Noah Moore visits the Nate Waters Physical Therapy Clinic several times a week. On Thursday he was working with two physical therapist assistants in training Alex Steinkirscner and Abbey Lechlider.
“We’ve been trying to put as much weight onto this leg as we can,” said Noah Moore. “We’ve been raising it and bending my knee.”
The 5th grader has Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency or PFFD. It’s an uncommon condition causing one leg to be shorter than the other. He’s gone through bone lengthening procedures to eventually make both feet touch the ground without a lift in his shoe.
“It’s really important throughout all of these procedures that he’s able to maintain full mobility so that he can have full mobility when both legs are the same length,” said Jessica Moore.
Jessica Moore is Noah’s mom. She says the family does have insurance, but three weekly physical therapy sessions are costly. She’s grateful for free sessions from Tulsa Community College’s Nate Waters Physical Therapy Clinic.
“We wouldn’t be able to afford that otherwise, so this is a huge blessing,” said Jessica Moore.
The clinic provides care while also training physical therapy assistants.
“The hands-on really puts everything into perspective that way we’re not just going out into the workforce not really knowing how to interact with actual patients so this really gives us the opportunity to know how to work with them,” said student Alex Steinkirscner.
Program Director Melanie Heffington says post pandemic they’ve seen more people needing physical therapy because they deferred their rehab during COVID.
“To be able to provide services for free allows us to help people to get back to their life roles,” said Heffington.
She says training students to fulfill these important roles post graduation while also providing critical services to the community is a part of their mission.
“It’s kind of a win win. Good for the community good for the school which is awesome,” said student Abbey Lechlider.
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