Fellowship in Manual Therapy

The Manual Therapy Fellowship program at The Ola Grimsby Institute provides an intensive, hands-on training experience, immersing participants in real-world clinical scenarios. The programme is for 2 years With 100% lab-focused sessions, students gain essential clinical skills under the guidance of expert instructors. The program’s flexible structure requires only three weekend campus visits per semester, ensuring convenience without compromising the depth and quality of the education. The experience concludes with a comprehensive final exam, where students showcase their knowledge and practical expertise.

One-on-one clinical mentoring enriches the Fellow-in-Training’s journey, offering a deeper and more personalized experience than standard continuing education or online courses. The curriculum incorporates diverse models of pathology (neurological, biomechanical, chemical), regional interdependence, movement systems, medical screening, pathology, imaging, and nutrition. It also thoroughly addresses all facets of patient care, including the psychosocial aspects and management of chronic pain.

The Manual Therapy Fellowship program is accredited by AAOMPT and adheres to the high standards established nationally and internationally by IFOMPT, ensuring rigorous and globally recognized training.

Course Dates and Cities:

Fellowship in Manual Therapy 2024 (Bellevue, Washington) January 15, 2025 – December 15, 2025

Applications

Fellows-in-training (FITs) will receive the curriculum through an online educational platform, providing video lectures, written information, testing, and communication. For hands-on training and instruction, FITs meet in a classroom setting with an experienced OGI instructor. The class schedule may vary from site to site, depending on the individual schedule established by individual OGI instructors. Part of every Fellowship program is the 150 hours of 1:1 clinical mentoring. Depending on your clinical situation, this may require travel to an OGI clinical mentor to complete this requirement. Mentoring hours are free of charge from OGI instructors and clinical mentors.

Prerequisites:Applicants to the OGI Fellowship program must practice in an orthopaedic manual therapy outpatient clinic and have an active physical therapy license. They must also submit two letters of recommendation and proof of active membership in APTA.

• First step is to visit our Student Registration Portal and select from the available Fellowship programs and follow the registration process. It requires you to download an Application Form, fill it and upload the filled form in the portal.
• Second step after the Application Form is uploaded we will review it and share an Enrollment Agreement on your registered email for the Fellowship program. You will have to fill and send it back to us via Email (all necessary instructions will be mentioned in the form).
• Third step: Upon receipt of the signed Enrollment Agreement, you will be able to make the payment for the program from our Student registration portal and begin your path to clinical mastery in orthopedic manual physical therapy.

Manual Therapy Fellowship Components

This streamlined program replaces our previous first-year Residency and second-year Fellowship.

Semester 1:

The Pre-Clinical Independent Study begins with an immersive Day 1 orientation, setting the foundation for your journey. During this intensive session, you’ll meet your mentors and peers, gain a clear understanding of the OGI concept, and receive a personalized study plan. You’ll also learn to navigate the digital learning portal and formally commit to excellence, ensuring a strong start to your academic and professional path.

Semesters 2-4:

This program offers intensive, hands-on practical training designed to immerse students in real-world clinical scenarios. With 100% lab-oriented sessions, participants will develop essential clinical skills under expert guidance. The flexible learning structure requires only three weekend campus visits per semester, providing convenience without compromising quality. The experience culminates in a comprehensive final exam, allowing students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills effectively.

Clinical Mentoring

1:1 clinical mentoring hours – 150 Students will perform 150 hours of 1:1 clinical supervision with OGI faculty or clinical mentors.

Supervised Clinical Hours: FITs are required to perform 440 hours of clinical supervision (inclusive of the 150 1:1 mentoring hours) that can be performed at the student’s routine work environment. For these hours FITs are in contact with an OGI faculty member via phone, e-mail, or other method of communication during that clinical time.

Required Research

FITs of the Manual Therapy Fellowship are required to complete a research project that is subject to approval by the Ola Grimsby Institute. Possible avenues of research are intensive literature review or formal case study.

Exams: Before completion of each program, students must pass written and practical/clinical exams. Upon successful completion of the written and practical exams, students are issued a certificate of completion. For further information regarding the testing mechanisms please see the Examination Policy of the Ola Grimsby Institute.

Program Tuition Costs, including all required seminars and final examinations: $12,896

Mentoring: One-to-one clinical mentoring strengthens the Fellow in Training’s experience beyond simple continuing education coursework or online lectures. The program covers different models of pathology (neurology, biomechanical, chemical), regional interdependence relationships, movement systems, medical screening, pathology, imaging, and nutrition are all incorporated into the curriculum.

Benefits: Upon successful completion of the program, the student can apply to the AAOMPT as a Fellow. The student is responsible for acquiring the necessary paperwork from the AAOMPT and submitting it to the Ola Grimsby Institute.

• Internationally recognized US membership at IFOMPT.
• The Manual Therapy Fellowship program is the highest level of education credentialed by the APTA.
• Prerequisite for attending Clinical Specialization in Manual Therapy, as well as our Ph.D. Program (OGI Year III Ph.D.)
• Research:  Opportunity to run research study proposed in Residency with opportunity of publication at the end of the year.

AAOMPT Approved

As the Ola Grimsby was a founding program of the American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapy (AAOMPT), the OGI Manual Therapy Fellowship program has been continually recognized by  AAOMPT as meeting the international standards of IFOMPT. The APTA has accredited the Manual Therapy Fellowship program of The Ola Grimsby Institute as a post-professional clinical fellowship in orthopaedic manual physical therapy. Physical therapists graduating from the Manual Therapy Fellowship Program may apply for the Fellow credential with the Academy (FAAOMPT).

OGi Fellowship Program Outcomes

• 2015: 5 fellows in training enrolled, 5 graduated
• 2016: 19 fellows in training enrolled, 18 graduated
• 2017: 6 fellows in training enrolled, 5 graduated
• 2018: 5 fellows in training enrolled, 5 graduated
• 2019: 8 fellows in training enrolled, 7 graduated

–  Program is accredited through 2025

Survey results from past 5 years as of January 2020:

Have you interpreted and integrated current research of curricular relevance to the basic sciences present in the Fellowship Program? If so, how?

• 75% affirmative

Have you applied all goals and objectives taught in the OGI Fellowship program within your organization? Please state how.

• 50% affirmative

Are you implementing science and philosophy from various “schools of taught” in the field of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapy?

• 100% affirmative

Are you continuing to assess values, reliability and validty of assessment procedures?

• 100% affirmative

Do you perform advanced orthopedic manual therapy assessments and special test procedures, understand and interpret radiology imaging, and blood panels, and how do you integrate this in the plan of care?

• 100% affirmative

Do you create and modify treatment techniques to comply with the individual patients, as to Soft Tissue Treatments, Stretching, Advanced methods of localization of biomechanical energy (locking techniques of extremities and spinal segments) for oscillations, articulations and manipulations?

• 100% affirmative

Are you implementing advanced, individual exercise progressions with reference to resistance, repetitions, speed, breaks, sets, concentric, and eccentric work, nutritional supplementation and exercise frequency?

• 100% affirmative

Do you assess the effect intervention and modifying it as indicated?

• 100% affirmative

Are you designing a research project and and developing a reserach hypothesis with a Phd?

• 100% negative

Are you teaching and mentoring advanced clinical skills in the field of Orthopedic Manual Therapy?

• 75% affirmative