Canada
UK
France
Australia
Jazmine Tooles, PT, DPT, is a staff therapist at MossRehab’s Drucker Brain Injury Center located in Woodbury, New Jersey and earned her Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from Temple University in 2011, followed by her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from the University of Delaware in 2013.
Jazmine has seven years of clinical experience, primarily in the neurological outpatient and inpatient setting and in 2012 developed three badges and a day program for Girl Scouts called Explore the Magic of Motion.
Read below to learn more about how she chose to become a PT, her advice for new PTs, and more!
Dr. Jazmine Tooles, PT, DPT
What was it that made you want to get into the profession?
I got into the profession of Physical Therapy after being introduced to it after a basketball injury during my sophomore year of high school. I spent eight months in therapy and fell in love with the profession. It is an amazing combination of science, creativity, and helping empower people to take care of their bodies.
Do you have any specializations? What made you get these specializations and how do they help your patients?
I specialize in Traumatic Brain Injury and Vestibular Dysfunction.
During my last clinical rotation in PT school, I worked with a therapist working inpatient rehab with traumatic brain injury patients. I enjoyed seeing how impactful physical therapists are in the life of these patients and was motivated to pursue that demographic upon graduation. As I worked with TBI patients, I saw a trend of issues with dizziness and headaches, making getting my certification in Vestibular Rehab a no brainer.
How does your career as a physical therapist extend beyond your daytime job?
As a Physical Therapist who is also a minority, my work has expanded to also provide cultural competence training to current and future professionals and try to increase awareness of the profession to diverse communities.
I am the founder and owner of Explore the Magic of Motion LLC., a signature summit and consultation service, offering physical therapy exploration programs to the community and cultural competence education with an outreach toolkit for current and aspiring Physical Therapists & Physical Therapist Assistants. It started in 2012 as a service-learning project when I developed a 3-part series Physical Therapy patch program for Girl Scouts and workshop that has reached over 500 scouts, clinicians, and students to date.
I am also an Adjunct Faculty member at Temple University, Host of Einstein Voices Staff DEI podcast, and Chair Einstein Healthcare Networks Cultural Diversity Special Interest group. I currently serve as the Secretary for APTA NJ's Executive Committee and APTA PA's Chair for the Minority Affairs Committee.
What are your top 5 items you must have as a clinician?
- Cultural Competence
- Patience
- Goniometers
- TheraBand
- Creativity
What is your advice to someone entering their career as a physical therapist?
Develop a mission and vision statement on what type of therapist you want to be. When we graduate, we are so eager to get a job we will settle for anything anyone will give us. However, every possibility is not always an opportunity. By defining your mission and vision, you can make choices that are in the best interest of your career goals and overall, well-being.
How has the profession changed since you started? Where do you see it going from here?
Productivity requirements must be the biggest change. Unfortunately, due to issues with reimbursement there are pressures placed on clinicians to see a higher volume to hit the healthcare organization’s bottom line. This results in more vulnerable populations not receiving the care they need and organizations that do serve the underserved are closing or struggling. Physical therapists will always be needed and though it will be a battle, I do hope to see the healthcare system payment model to be more beneficial to the patients and the organizations that service them instead of the insurance companies.
What new products and technologies are you excited about and what is your favorite Performance Health product?
I was recently introduced to mTrigger, an easy-to-use biofeedback machine. I think this is a great product especially for those patients with cognitive dysfunctions to get real time feedback on an activity performed in therapy.
Performance Health has a wide range of products that can be used for patients and TheraBand is my favorite. It has so many uses. It’s practical, doesn't require a lot of storage space, and patients can use it anywhere. It can't be beat!
Who will be our next featured clinician? Nominate yourself or someone you know!
1. Click on the link below
2. Answer the questions on the form
3. Submit a photo of yourself
Medical Disclaimer: The information provided on this site, including text, graphics, images and other material are for informational purposes only and are not intended to substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other healthcare professional with any questions or concerns you may have regarding your condition.
