Neurologic Residency Program

Hartford HealthCare Rehabilitation is committed to the training of the next generation of physical therapy clinicians, researchers, and scholars.

Training of the Residents in this 13-month developing program residency allows clinicians to develop and enhance their skills and clinical decision-making across the continuum of care in neurologic physical therapy. Residents will be educated and mentored in Neurologic Physical Therapy, scholarly activity, and participate in the clinical instruction of entry-level DPT students. The program is heavily focused on experiential learning and mentoring, supplemented with didactic education. Mentoring is provided by experts in neurologic physical therapy in dynamic multidisciplinary environments.

Program Mission 

The mission of the Hartford HealthCare Rehabilitation Network Neurologic Physical Therapy Residency program is to provide clinical and academic opportunities necessary to develop advanced practitioners in the field of neurologic physical therapy. To prepare clinicians to contribute to the profession and to improve the health, healing, and wellness of the communities we serve through advanced and evidence-enhanced clinical practice, professional development, life-long learning, scholarship, community involvement, and to become expert educators and leaders in neurologic specialty practice.

Program Goals Support the mission, vision, values, and goals of Hartford Healthcare. Advance the profession of physical therapy, specifically the practice of neurologic physical therapy, by facilitating the development of clinicians promoting a commitment to lifelong learning, teaching, and scholarship. Recruit and retain motivated physical therapists who possess a commitment to advancing their neurologic clinical skills, clinical reasoning skills, and leadership skills. Provide mentorship and instruction in the areas of clinical care, clinical education, and scholarship. Provide didactic and clinical learning environments that integrate evidence-based clinical practice. Improve access for patients to highly qualified neurologic physical therapists in the state of Connecticut. Prepare graduates to meet the requirements to test for the Specialist Certification in Neurology by the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialists (ABPTS).

Program Specifics ABPTRFE Accreditation: Developing Program as of August 28, 2025 Application Period: 12/15/2025 to 1/31/2026 Duration: 13 months Start/End Date: July 27th, 2026 to August 27th, 2027 Number of Residents Accepted: 1 per program year Number of Graduates: N/A Completion Rate: N/A First Time Specialty Exam Pass Rate: N/A

A typical week for the resident consists of approximately 40-50 hours of dedicated time, of which 65% will be devoted to clinical practice, 20% to learning activities, 10% to teaching, and 5% to scholarship. 

Total Program Hours: 2620

• Educational hours - 330
• Patient-care clinic hours - 1700 (32-37 hours/week)
• Mentoring hours - 182

Clinical Practice

Residency involves clinical rotation through 3 levels of care in neurological rehabilitation. Travel is minimal with all clinical sites located within a few miles of each other. 

• Inpatient Rehabilitation (18 weeks): Hartford Hospital has a 26-bed inpatient rehabilitation unit that provides specialized care through a multidisciplinary team of physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, social work, case managers, recreation therapists, physiatry, and physiatry residents.

• Acute Care (13 weeks): Hartford Hospital is a 867-bed regional referral and Level 1 Trauma Center. The Joint Commission has designated The Stroke Center at Hartford Hospital as New England and Connecticut’s first Comprehensive Stroke Center. Hartford Hospital was named a top teaching hospital by The Leapfrog Group in 2024, one of only 75 teaching hospitals in the country to achieve this status.

• Outpatient (26 weeks): Multidisciplinary care is offered in our Vernon outpatient location, with staff demonstrating expertise in all areas of neurologic rehab, including vestibular rehab and wellness classes for Parkinsons Disease.

32-34 clinical hours per week. Of these, approximately 4 hours a week are formally mentored. During this time, residents will collaborate 1:1 with an expert clinician to facilitate professional growth, clinical decision-making, and skill development. Opportunities to develop advanced clinical skills via mentored and independent clinical practice occur through the Hartford HealthCare Rehabilitation Network. Patient populations at these facilities allow for exposure to the entire lifespan and across various cultures. 

Residents will have the opportunity to observe and experience multi-disciplinary care with partners such as physicians, advanced practice providers, assistive technology providers, respiratory therapists, occupational therapists, lymphedema therapists, orthotists, prosthetists, and more. 

Didactic Learning

The curriculum is structured around the Neurologic Physical Therapy Description of Practice assessment readiness guidelines. After your residency, you will be prepared to take the Neurologic Clinical Specialist examination.

The residency program utilizes the Institute for Knowledge Translation (iKT) for the majority of the didactic coursework for the program. The format of delivery is a hybrid model with over 100 hours of asynchronous educational modules and weekly synchronous online group mentoring and journal clubs. The content is delivered by experts across the nation in the field of neurologic physical therapy with a focus on knowledge translation, measurement, leadership development, integration of research, statistics, and clinical inquiry. Coursework will also be supplemented by MedBridge modules, Parkinson's Wellness Recovery! therapist certification course, International Standards Training e-Learning Program, and skills labs. The iKT will also provide one practice examination, which will be completed in preparation for the NCS Examination. 

Residents also participate in a yearlong leadership development program led by the HHC Leadership Development Institute. This program offers personalized, coordinated learning to drive personal growth and develop leadership skills. 

Teaching 

Residents will participate in teaching opportunities at the University of Hartford and Hartford HealthCare Rehabilitation Network. At the University of Hartford, they will serve as Adjunct Faculty through lab assistance work in the entry-level DPT curriculum neurological rehabilitation course for one semester. Through Hartford HealthCare, the resident will develop foundational teaching skills and be provided consistent constructive feedback on overall performance via Colleague In-services, involvement with the Neurologic Special Interest Group through Hartford HealthCare and the Connecticut APTA, and serve as a clinical instructor for Integrated Clinical Experience level 1 DPT students 

Scholarship 

The Hartford HealthCare Neurologic Residency strives to foster fundamental skills in clinical scholarship. Residents will have the opportunity to participate in a knowledge translation project, a case report, and may disseminate scholarship via submission for presentation at a conference and/or for consideration in a peer-reviewed publication. 

Admission Criteria 

• Completion of an admission application, which will include: 
  • CV
  • Official Transcript from Physical Therapy Program
  • Essay describing the reasons for applying to the  Neurologic Residency Program at Hartford Healthcare.
  • Three letters of recommendation and reference rating forms 
• Must be a graduate of a CAPTE-accredited professional physical therapy program. 
• Must hold a valid Connecticut Physical Therapy License before the start of the program. 

New graduates from all accredited physical therapy programs are welcome to apply. Candidates will be invited for an interview with the Program Director, Program Coordinator, and selected leadership of HHCRN. 

Application Period: 12/15/25 to 01/31/26. Applicants are notified of our decision during the common offer period in March. 

Apply to our Residency Program

Program Faculty/Mentors

Inpatient Rehab Mentors

• Kaitlyn Resutek, DPT, CSRS
• Shantel Szymanski, PT, CSRS, Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy  

Acute Care Mentors 

• Sherri Feenstra, PT, CEEAA CBIS CSRS 

Outpatient Rehab Mentors

• Lily Holm, DPT, Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy
• Megan Rood, PT, CSRS, Board Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy  

Residency Program Leadership

Questions?

Email Shantel Szymanski, Shantel.Szymanski@hhchealth.org or Megan Rood, Megan.Rood@hhchealth.org

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