UNMC volunteers screened Special Olympians

Physical therapy student Katie Wolfe and UNMC physical therapy graduate Patricia Kearns help an Olympian with the abdominal strength test.

Special Olympics Nebraska games have been held since 1968, but this year’s athletes not only participated in their events, they also contributed valuable information to a national database on Special Olympian fitness. Students and faculty from UNMC’s School of Allied Health Professions Physical Therapy Education played a major role in screening 230 athletes for the FUNfitness program – a division of the Healthy Athletes Initiated developed by the American Physical Therapy Association and Special Olympics International.

Forty-one UNMC physical therapy students, several graduates, four faculty members and two staff members volunteered to do the screenings on May 21. The program screened the athletes’ flexibility, strength and balance through a variety of testing procedures. The data collected from the event will be put into a database at Special Olympics International headquarters in Washington, D.C., and will be available for Special Olympics Nebraska officials to review local athletic deficiencies in any of the categories tested. The information can be used to develop training exercises for the athletes and to track their progress during the coming years. It also represents a significant data collection on the fitness of an underserved population.

Physical therapy student Stacia Troshynski spots an athlete during a balance test.

The mission of Special Olympics is to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for all children and adults with mental retardation. The Special Olympics gives them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in the sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, fellow athletes and community.

In Nebraska, there are more than 19 different competitive sports for all levels of ability. More than 3,000 Special Olympics athletes practice and compete year-round in 81 communities across the state. There are more than 6,000 volunteers across Nebraska who make the games a reality.

FUNfitness is the third component in the Healthy Athletes Initiative, along with Opening Eyes (vision screenings) and Special Smiles (oral health examinations). FUNfitness helps identify musculoskeletal impairments that do or could cause problems for the athlete, then educates the athlete on how to improve function. The program also provides a positive association to a medically related screening – an important factor for some participants.

Physical therapy student Tessa Wells and UNMC physical therapy faculty member Joe Norman assess the hamstring flexibility of an athlete.

“Our volunteer staff said that working with Special Olympics athletes was the same as working with any other group of people, except these individuals were more enthusiastic and motivated to improve,” said UNMC physical therapy student Jason Moore, who serves as Nebraska state coordinator for the FUNfitness program.

“This was a unique experience for all of our volunteers – many people said they couldn’t put into words how moved they were after working with these athletes,” Moore said. “Faculty members said this was a great learning opportunity for the students because students were able to practice evaluation techniques and work on communication skills with other physical therapists, while serving a diverse population of athletes that many students are not exposed to normally.

UNMC’s School of Allied Health Professions Physical Therapy Education played a major role in screening athletes.

“The athletes’ state of health was as diverse as the general population. There were some athletes with a lot of musculoskeletal problems – especially flexibility issues – and others who are probably in better shape than you and me.”

In addition to the UNMC volunteers, the FUNfitness program was assisted by Patricia Kearns, a UNMC graduate employed by Quality Living, Inc; several Omaha physical therapists; and Creighton University students and faculty.