Carey Rothschild Archives | �鶹ԭ�� News

7 �鶹ԭ�� Health Professions Faculty Inducted to National Academies of Practice

Grayson Keglovic — Mon, 24 Mar 2025 18:31:33 +0000

Seven accomplished leaders, educators and researchers in the College of Health Professions and Sciences (CHPS) have been inducted as Distinguished Fellows in the National Academies of Practice (NAP). The prestigious distinction is awarded to scholars who have excelled in their field while demonstrating dedication to the advancement of interprofessional education, scholarship, research, practice and policy in support of interprofessional care.

The inductees and their respective academies are: Interim Dean Matthew Theriot (Social Work), Associate Dean of Research Jennifer Kent-Walsh (Speech-Language Pathology), Department of Health Sciences Chair Gail Kauwell (Nutrition and Dietetics), Director for the School of Communication Sciences and Disorders Ann Eddins (Audiology), Associate Professor Nicole Dawson (Physical Therapy), Clinical Associate Professor Carey Rothschild (Physical Therapy) and Assistant Professor Susanny Beltran (Social Work). The honors were bestowed at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C., on March 15.

Prior to his appointment as interim dean, Theriot served as the director of the School of Social Work where he implemented a professional and community education program, grew interprofessional research opportunities, and elevated the school’s graduate rankings. As the interim dean, he provides leadership to the School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, the Department of Health Sciences, the School of Kinesiology and Rehabilitation Sciences, and the School of Social Work. Theriot’s career includes more than two decades of higher education teaching and research coupled with years of executive leadership roles centered around implementing strategic initiatives. He previously worked as a school social worker, mobile crisis counselor and child welfare worker. Theriot is active in professional service on a national level, chairing the Council on Social Work Education’s Commission on Membership and Professional Development.

Kent-Walsh is a Pegasus Professor and the associate dean of research and faculty excellence within CHPS, the director of the Florida Alliance for Assistive Services and Technology Center and leads the Assistive Technology Center Lab. Kent-Walsh has earned more than two dozen awards and accolades for excellence in teaching, service, research and innovation during her more than 20-year career in higher education and has worked extensively in interdisciplinary teaching and clinical roles. A highly accomplished researcher, she has secured millions in funding to further her research which focuses on aided language development and augmentative and alternative communication, has presented her work extensively nationally and internationally, and has led a variety of initiatives in the college to advance interdisciplinary research and practice.

An experienced educator, researcher and registered dietician nutritionist with more than four decades of experience in academia focused on nutrition and dietetics education and practice, Kauwell has served as Professor and Chair of the Department of Health Sciences for the last six years. Her mentoring skills and passion for educating future healthcare professionals have been recognized with multiple awards for teaching and mentoring excellence. Her research record, which focuses on folate and vitamin B12, has been published in top-ranked journals with findings translated into materials for healthcare professionals and consumers. Kauwell most recently spearheaded the development of the department’s first graduate program, the master’s in health promotion and behavioral sciences.

Eddins, a professor and the director of the School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, has more than 30 years of academic and leadership experience in the field. She is a clinical audiologist and classically trained neuroscientist who has centered her clinical and research interests on neural encoding, neural plasticity aging and rehabilitative intervention — working to better understand the neural bases of auditory perception in normal-hearing and hearing-impaired individuals. Her research has been continuously funded by the NIH, NSF, private industry and foundations. Eddins is also a leader on a national level, serving as past President of the Council of Academic Programs in Communication Sciences & Disorders and on the Board of Directors and journal editor for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.

Dawson has been involved with interprofessional education, practice and research throughout her 22-year career. An associate professor in the Division of Physical Therapy and director of the Aging and Longevity Initiatives for Vitality & Enrichment Lab, Dawson’s clinical work and research has centered around healthy aging and improving the quality of life for seniors. She is a Board Certified Geriatric Physical Therapist Emeritus who has been recognized by both the Academy of Geriatric Physical Therapy and the American Physical Therapy Association for her outstanding work as an educator. She holds an appointment with �鶹ԭ��’s Faculty Cluster Initiative in Disability, Aging and Technology, an interdisciplinary collaboration that explores innovations to better support aging populations.

A clinical associate professor in the Division of Physical Therapy, Rothschild is a board-certified clinical specialist in sports physical therapy and orthopedic physical therapy, a certified strength and conditioning specialist and a Menopause Society certified practitioner. Her areas of interest are determining best practices for the assessment and treatment of persistent pain to improve the health of patients. Rothschild has more than 25 years of clinical practice experience, collaborating with interprofessional and intraprofessional teams to deliver cost-effective, collaborative and patient-centered care to those with chronic pain. She has been recognized nationally for her teaching excellence, and recently helped lead the implementation of a new Women’s Health Physical Therapy Residency program in conjunction with Orlando Health. She also serves as editor in chief of the prominent publication Orthopaedic Physical Therapy Practice.

Beltran, an assistant professor in the School of Social Work and a co-director of the Center for Behavioral Health Research and Training is committed to fostering interdisciplinary education and research in social change and development. Her expertise is in gerontological social work and her research concentrates on end-of-life care, advance care planning and challenges that may come with working in hospice and nursing home settings. Beltran aims to enhance collaborative practice in the care of older adults and improve access and navigation of end-of-life care for older adults while preparing social workers for effective practice in interdisciplinary settings.

The NAP Academies also include dentistry, nursing, occupational therapy, optometry, pharmacy, podiatric medicine, psychology, respiratory care and veterinary medicine.

These faculty members join four CHPS faculty previously inducted into the NAP. In 2023, ��Ի��, and in 2024, Clinical Associate Professors Laurie Neely and Jennifer Tucker ’23 were inducted in physical therapy.

How to Train for a Marathon

Heather Lovett — Thu, 11 Apr 2024 19:23:27 +0000

The Boston Marathon brings together thousands of runners who earn an entry to the coveted event by meeting rigid qualifying times in runs held across the nation. This year’s event takes place on April 15.

A panel of faculty experts from the College of Health Professions and Sciences, many of them accomplished long-distance runners themselves, share what it takes to prepare for 26.2 miles and discuss some of the new trends and technologies competitors are using to prepare and compete.

College of Health Professions and Sciences faculty (Top to bottom, left to right): David Fukuda, Sarah Fretti, Jeff Stout, Cheryl Cavaliere; Peter Buffington ’12DPT and Carey Rothschild.

What kind of running regimen should be followed to prepare for a marathon? Training for this distance has unique demands in terms of how to fuel and hydrate the body as well as developing a successful training regimen, says Peter Buffington ’12DPT, �鶹ԭ�� Physical Therapy Clinic director. He has run 17 marathons, including six Boston Marathons, and has already qualified for the 2025 Boston Marathon.

For most prospective marathoners, training will take four to six months, Buffington says.

“A runner must figure out how to increase running velocity (through speed work) and to maintain that pace even when their legs have a significant amount of fatigue,” he says. “For many runners coming to the marathon from a shorter distance, this means extending their long run to 2.5 to 3 hours.”

Buffington says one training technique is “slow running,” which places an emphasis on running slower on easy days, coupled with adequate recovery, to ultimately improve speed.

“Some experts use the analogy of a sponge: people are better able to ‘absorb’ the training when running at a slower pace on the day or two after a fast session,” he says. “Those easy miles serve a purpose: they allow for less stress on the lower legs which, in turn, allows a runner to withstand an overall higher volume of training.”

Aside from running, what other physical preparation is needed?
Get your body checked out before you start training, sports medicine experts say. An examination from a physical therapist can assess joint range of motion, muscular strength and muscular flexibility to identify any asymmetries or weaknesses and help prevent injuries. Carey Rothschild, a clinical associate professor in the Division of Physical Therapy, says core and hip stability are key components of running, and strengthening them is essential to support the demands of marathon training.

�鶹ԭ�� Physical Therapy Clinic Director Peter Buffington ’12DPT (left) and Clinical Associate Professor Carey Rothschild (right) after a race.

“Runners want to run, not strength train,” Rothschild says. “But for longevity in sport, the body’s tissues must be robust and resilient to withstand the demands of marathon training. Ultimately, the runner should complete functional strength training a minimum of two to three times per week to maximize muscular capacity.”

Common exercises Rothschild recommends for runners include plank variations, hip abductor and extensor training, calf and foot muscle exercises, and variations in squats, deadlifts, lunges, and plyometric activities. A long-distance runner for more than 30 years, Rothschild has completed the Boston Marathon eight times.

What’s the latest gear and tech runners are seeking to improve performance? “The advancement of wearable technology allows runners to get multiple streams of real-time physiological feedback beyond heart rate, step count, and even GPS,” says David Fukuda, professor and chair of the Division of Kinesiology. “They can track or even recommend appropriate intensity zones or monitor indicators of fatigue and metabolism through blood or sweat samples. This information can also be used to assist with decision making during training or competitions.”

“Wearables such as Garmin watches, Whoop armbands, Oura rings, and others are providing more feedback about recovery and sleep, measuring things like heart rate variability and respiration rate, which give a runner data that indicates how well they are recovering,” Buffington adds.

“Recently, elite runners have been trialing super light, single use shoes which may improve performance due to their extremely light weight and propulsive construction,” Rothchild says. “There’s no consensus on the ideal shoe type for runners. Many shoe types exist and ultimately must be comfortable for the runner at first try. The best shoe for a runner will be based on individual foot structure and gait pattern.”

VO₂max tests, short for maximum oxygen uptake, used to be just for elite athletes, but are now becoming more affordable and used more broadly. The test is the gold standard measure of cardiorespiratory fitness and reflects how efficiently your body uses oxygen to generate energy during strenuous activity, says Sarah Fretti, clinical assistant professor in the Division of Kinesiology. “Imagine your body like a car engine. Oxygen is the fuel, and VO₂max reflects how well your engine converts that fuel into energy. The higher your VO₂max, the more efficiently you use oxygen, allowing you to run faster for longer durations.”

A test typically involves exercising on a treadmill or cycle ergometer with gradually increasing intensity until maximum effort is reached. VO₂max testing offers runners metrics that are valuable for targeted training and progress tracking. Some smartwatches and fitness trackers can estimate VO₂max based on various data points, though their accuracy can vary, Fretti says.

What should runners look for in a performance enhancement supplement?
“The market for performance supplements is extensive, and there is a wide range in terms of safety and effectiveness,” says Jeff Stout, Pegasus Professor and director of the School of Kinesiology and Rehabilitation Science.

No supplements have been proven to provide immediate performance benefits beyond caffeine, says Stout, who has published extensively on the topic for more than 30 years. He cautions runners to avoid supplements that have not been proven or tested, and to always try out any supplementation approach before participating in competitive events.

To stay hydrated and maintain energy during races, drink a sports beverage like Gatorade or Powerade that contains around 6-7% carbohydrates (about 14 grams per 8 ounces or 240 milliliters). This provides roughly 0.5 grams of carbs per minute, helping you perform your best.

Another thing that might help boost performance is having a moderate amount of caffeine about 30 minutes before the race. A good range is 3 milligrams to 5 milligrams of caffeine per kilogram of body weight. For a runner that weighs 70 kilograms (154 pounds), that would be about 210 milligrams to 350 milligrams of caffeine, which is roughly two to three cups of coffee.

For marathon training, one of the most beneficial nutritional strategies is to consume a post-training recovery drink. Stout recommends choosing post-workout nutritional supplements that are rich in high-quality protein, high-glycemic carbohydrates, essential electrolytes (especially sodium), and water. He says the ideal ratio of carbohydrates to protein may vary depending on the intensity of the workout: 1:1 for low-intensity training and 2:1 for more demanding, high-intensity sessions.

Tell us about the basic diet and nutritional needs for long distance runners? Do these needs change during training, race day and recovery? How?
“All nutrients are needed to optimize the performance of distance runners, but carbohydrate and fluid intake are of paramount importance,” says Cheryl Cavaliere, a lecturer in the Department of Health Sciences. “The body relies on glucose as the preferred energy source during running, and fluids are needed to replenish water and electrolyte losses that occur through sweating, breathing and metabolism.”

When adequate amounts of carbohydrate and fluids are not consumed before, during and after training and competitive events, performance can suffer, says Cavaliere, who has completed two marathons and is currently training run her first ultra-marathon, which will be a 50k.

“For runs lasting more than 60 minutes, carbohydrate and electrolyte containing liquids are often used because they are absorbed quickly to replenish lost nutrients and water,” she says. “During ultra-endurance events like marathons, athletes might also eat carbohydrate rich foods like pretzels, fruits, honey sandwiches, cookies, baked potatoes, sweet potatoes and Japanese sticky rice to support their need for glucose. However, it is important to practice nutrition prior to race day to understand personal tolerance. Runners should also consume carbohydrates immediately post-exercise to facilitate maximum recovery.”

Don’t overlook the value of foods with healthy fat, Cavaliere says.

“Fat is a fuel source needed to spare carbohydrate and to prevent the use of protein for energy,” she says. “The goal is to maintain adequate intake of overall calories prior to race day to help meet total energy needs, spare carbohydrate use during running, and spare protein breakdown post-exercise.”

A focus on having whole foods from a variety of food sources in the overall diet can help runners maximize energy stores for optimal performance.