Curriculum

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PT resident performing a shoulder mobilization exercise.

Trainee experience

The Physical Therapy Orthopaedic Residency is a full-time, 54-week program. You experience 1,500 hours of clinical practice, including over 150 hours of individual mentored time from highly trained and board-certified physical therapists and over 300 education hours.

Didactic and laboratory education, including manual therapy psychomotor skill acquisition, is integrated throughout the curriculum and modeled after the orthopaedic physical therapy description of residency practice in the following modules:

Foundations module

Clinical reasoning
Communications and quality service
Practice management and professionalism
Evidence based practice and research
Biopsychosocial and chronic pain management

Spine module

Lumbar spine
Pelvis, sacroiliac, and abdomen
Thoracic spine and ribs
Cervical spine
Cranial and temporomandibular joint

Upper quarter module

Shoulder
Elbow
Wrist and hand

Lower Quarter Module

Hip
Knee
Foot and ankle

Additional content module

Basic sciences
Pharmacology
Diagnostic imaging

Other curriculum content and directed learning activities include assisting with teaching lectures and laboratory coursework, clinical mentoring and teaching physical therapy students, simulation center and cadaveric anatomy lab experiences, and observing other medical specialty practices.

Requirements for residency completion include presenting at outpatient study groups and educational grand rounds, completion of a department Evidence Informed Practice Document, as well as completing a final research project chosen from one of these options:

A critically appraised topic, completed in accordance with the instructions for authors in the Journal of Sport Rehabilitation, or a systematic review and/or meta-analysis of a clinical topic.
Participation in a defined role in ongoing departmental research activities. The resident must prepare a scholarly product (manuscript or poster) reflecting their contribution to the project.
A self-initiated study, designed and implemented by the resident. Examples of appropriate study designs include:
- A retrospective study: Analyze existing clinical data or chart review following guidelines for reporting observational studies (Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology [STROBE]).
- A qualitative study: Collect and analyze qualitative data to better understand a clinical concept or experience.
- A clinimetric study: Examine the clinimetric properties of a clinical measurement procedure used in physical therapy practice.

A quality improvement project that is proposed, designed, and implemented by the resident to address a department need. The resident must prepare a scholarly product (manuscript or poster) reflecting their contribution to the project.

Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences is committed to developing and maintaining the best education programs. The curriculum and other aspects of this program are routinely assessed and changed as necessary to ensure the highest quality training.

Schedule and hours

For the majority of the residency, the learning schedule is 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. When rotating through the sports medicine center, residents have patient care responsibilities in the evenings a few days a week. Independent learning and assignments occur outside of this time frame.

Mayo Clinic residency has allowed me to develop sound critical thinking skills, expand my knowledge in treating more complex orthopedic conditions, and grow in my ability to deliver high quality patient care. Participating in residency has allowed me to learn from a variety of renowned leaders within the physical therapy field and grow as a professional through the unique opportunities offered at Mayo Clinic.

Angie Swanson, P.T., D.P.T.
Class of 2024-2025

Department and faculty

The Physical Therapy Orthopaedic Residency is coordinated and taught by the clinical, scientific, and technical staffs of Mayo Clinic. Faculty members are chosen for their commitment to teaching, as well as their clinical practice and research. Many are board-certified specialists in orthopaedics, sports, or hand therapy.

Teaching faculty

Ryan Buus, P.T., D.P.T., OCS
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy

Darren Calley, P.T., DScPT, OCS
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy

Chad Cherny, P.T., D.P.T., SCS
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Sports Physical Therapy

Adam Finck, P.T., D.P.T., OCS
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy

Aaron Hellem, P.T., D.P.T., OCS
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy

Nathan Hellyer, Ph.D., P.T.

John Hollman, Ph.D.

Kim Jensen, M.S., P.T., C.H.T.
Board-Certified Hand Therapist

Mark Jensen, P.T., OCS
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy

Andrew Johnson, P.T., D.P.T., SCS-ABPTS
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Sports Physical Therapy

David Krause, P.T., D.Sc.
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy Emeritus

Corey Kunzer, P.T., D.P.T., SCS
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Sports Physical Therapy

Madeline Lee, P.T., D.P.T., OCS
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy

Stephanie Lopez, M.S., P.T., D.P.T., A.T.C.
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Sports Physical Therapy

Aaron Rindflesch, Ph.D., MPT
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Neurologic Physical Therapy

Nicole Ron, P.T., D.P.T.
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic and Women’s Health Physical Therapy

Rebecca Wessel, M.B.A.
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy

Paul Yerhot, P.T., D.P.T., SCS-ABPTS
Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Sports Physical Therapy

Program leadership

Darren Calley, P.T., DScPT, OCS

Dr. Calley is the director of the Neurologic, Orthopaedic, and Sports Physical Therapy residencies at Mayo Clinic's campus in Rochester, Minnesota and is a core faculty member for the Mayo Clinic Program in Physical Therapy at Mayo Clinic in Rochester. He helped organize and create the clinical and didactic curriculum utilized in the Mayo Clinic Physical Therapy Orthopaedic and Sports residencies, and serves as a primary mentor and core faculty member for these programs.

He is a 1996 graduate of Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences' physical therapy program. In 2006, he became a board-certified specialist in orthopaedics, and in 2009 he earned a DScPT degree through the University of Maryland. Dr. Calley is an assistant professor of physical therapy at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science. His research interests include musculoskeletal examination, psychosocial factors, and clinical and residency education.

With a strong background in clinical and residency education, Dr. Calley served 10 years as an outpatient clinical education coordinator and 9 years as the Mayo Clinic Physical Therapy Orthopaedic Residency coordinator in Rochester, where he has been a primary clinical instructor to more than 175 physical therapy students and a mentor to over 28 residents in an outpatient orthopedic setting. He is a member of the American Physical Therapy Association, the Orthopaedic and Education Academies, and several Orthopaedic Academy Special Interest Groups.

Ryan Buus, P.T., D.P.T, OCS

Profile photo of Ryan Buus Dr. Buus is the clinical education coordinator for the primary outpatient orthopaedic physical therapy location at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Dr. Buus also serves as the residency coordinator and assistant program director for the Mayo Clinic Orthopaedic Physical Therapy Residency program and as a mentor and faculty for the Mayo Clinic Orthopaedic and Sports Physical Therapy Residency programs. He has academic appointment as assistant professor of physical therapy at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science.

Dr. Buus completed his Bachelor of Arts in Biology from Saint John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota, in 2004. He had multiple experiences in the research laboratory before completing Doctor of Physical Therapy training at Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences in 2014. He completed the Mayo Clinic Orthopaedic Physical Therapy residency in 2015 and became a board-certified orthopaedic clinical specialist (OCS) in 2016. He has been a staff member at Mayo Clinic since 2015 and was the Musculoskeletal Lead Therapist prior to transitioning to the Clinical Education Coordinator position.

Dr. Buus enjoys the opportunity to provide direct clinical mentorship to learners he works with on a daily basis. Dr. Buus has been critical in advancing the use of outcome measures for the busy clinician and leveraging the medical records to streamline documentation without sacrificing the patient care experience. He is an active member of the American Physical Therapy Association and American Academy of Orthopedic Physical Therapy.

Mentors

Ryan Buus, P.T., D.P.T, OCS

Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy

Darren Calley, P.T., DScPT, OCS

Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy

Chad Cherny, P.T., D.P.T., SCS

Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Sports Physical Therapy

Kim Jensen, M.S., P.T., C.H.T.

Board-Certified Hand Therapist

Mark Jensen, P.T., OCS

Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Orthopaedic Physical Therapy

Corey Kunzer, P.T., D.P.T., SCS

Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Sports Physical Therapy

Paul Yerhot, P.T., D.P.T., SCS-ABPTS

Board-Certified Clinical Specialist in Sports Physical Therapy

Visiting professors and lecturers

A hallmark of higher education excellence is the breadth and depth of information and experience provided to you by faculty and visiting experts. Each year, many prominent professors visit Mayo Clinic to lecture in their areas of medical and scientific expertise.

As a resident at Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences, you are encouraged to learn from these valuable resources by attending all relevant conferences, lectures and seminars prepared for students, interns, residents, fellows and consulting staff.

Facilities

Mayo Clinic's campus in Rochester, Minnesota, includes an extensive outpatient complex, Mayo Clinic Hospital — Rochester, and substantial research and education facilities. This Mayo Clinic site is among the largest, most advanced medical centers in the world.

As a resident, you spend the majority of your time at the outpatient orthopaedic clinic and also rotate through the hand clinic and sports medicine practice areas in downtown Rochester, Minnesota.

Evaluation

Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences uses these evaluative tools:

Written quizzes
Demonstration of skills
Self-assessment exercises
Mentor and faculty feedback forms
Three live patient exams

Mayo Clinic's system of evaluation provides students and faculty with a comprehensive look at individual performance. This allows faculty and administrative staff to direct students who are experiencing academic difficulty to the appropriate support resources, including tutoring programs and counseling opportunities.