For new doctor of physical therapy graduate, working with Larry Bird all in a day's work

May 7, 2010 - PRLog -- When former Boston Celtics great Larry Bird has a problem with his back these days, he pays a visit to Josh Corbeil.

Corbeil, who will graduate from the MGH Institute on May 8 with his Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree, is the Head Athletic Trainer for Indiana Pacers where Bird is president of basketball operations.

“I see him every day during the season,” said Corbeil, a native of Attleboro. “He’s a great guy to work for.”

For Corbeil, who has worked for the NBA team since 2004, getting his DPT at the Institute has been very beneficial.

“Once I saw how the courses were structured and got into the program, I knew I’d get a lot out of it,” he said. “The faculty even made our statistics course interesting and relevant to how I can be a better physical therapist.”

Corbeil, whose wife is expecting their fist child any day and thus will miss the Boston health sciences graduate school’s May 8 Commencement ceremonies, will graduate with a perfect 4.0 GPA.

“I was so interested in the courses that it’s the first time I’ve done that well in school,” he said with a chuckle.

The transitional Doctor of Physical Therapy program is a combination of course work and documentation of professional experience designed for U.S. licensed practicing physical therapists who hold either a bachelor's or a master's degree in physical therapy.

While he says his new degree with help him keep the Pacers on the court and out of the training room, the team has also begun using his credentials to recruit free agents.

“I’m the only trainer in the league who has a DPT, and we let players know that as they consider where to sign,” said Corbeil, who noted that jabout one-third of the league’s 30 teams have a physical therapist as head trainer. “It’s a real selling point because we can treat them in different ways, which can help them avoid injuries as well as heal faster.”

Not only that, he says his being a physical therapist means the players tend to respect his opinions more frequently.

Like Larry Bird. After all, there’s been no reports of any recurring back pain while he’s been with the Pacers.

MGH Institute of Health Professions, founded by Massachusetts General Hospital in 1977, is an innovative and independent graduate school that operates within the frame¬work of Partners HealthCare System.

A progressive leader in developing compre¬hensive models of health care education, the MGH Institute prepares advanced practice professionals in the fields of nursing, physical therapy, speech-language pathology, and medical imaging through a distinctive combination of academic study, clinical practice, and research.

More than 900 students are enrolled in graduate level and certificate programs, with an increasing number of courses available online. The Institute is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.

For more informatino, go to http://www.mghihp.edu