Cary Morin, DPT MCSP, an LSVT BIG Certified physiotherapist since 2017, shares his experience providing LSVT BIG in the United Kingdom.
Share with us your journey to becoming a physiotherapist.
I graduated from the 2016 inaugural class of Campbell University’s Doctor of Physical Therapy program in North Carolina. I was President of the class and founded the DPT Student Association. As a class, we started what we hope will be a lasting endowment for future students in the form of scholarships and financial awards. I’m very proud that they have just inducted the newest cohort to graduate in 2022!
I was the oldest student in my class and likely still the oldest to ever be in the program. By my 30’s I had already realized so many of my dreams and goals, and I decided to change directions and have what I “do” become something that also helps others. I knew this was going to be in the medical/healthcare arena, but I wasn’t sure what that would be. I went back to my old college, started taking all my sciences and began shadowing different medical professionals. It wasn’t until I experienced the pain of a cervical nerve impingement, ending up in the care of a Physical Therapist, that I knew this is what I wanted to do. I found the requirements to be accepted into a graduate program and just kept going. From decision to diploma was almost 10 years, and at 48, I became a Doctor of Physical Therapy.
I ended up starting my career as a physiotherapist here in England, having along the way fallen in love and marrying a foreigner!
How did you get interested in Parkinson’s disease and LSVT BIG®?
My school focused on molding great clinicians. I was blessed with solid clinical experiences in acute care and outpatient orthopedics, including four amazing months at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. I was drawn to both musculoskeletal and neurological conditions, with the goal of having my own private outpatient clinic. In my neuroscience classes (led by a brilliant PT, Dr. Michelle Green) volunteers who were living with each condition we were studying at the time were recruited to come to our labs. In choosing a thesis, without hesitation, I dove into Parkinson’s disease. The day after I took my National Physical Therapy Exam, I started working toward my LSVT BIG certification knowing this would be the best way to make a difference when assisting in the needs of these patients.
When were you certified in LSVT BIG and how many patients have you treated?
I became certified in 2017. I have treated close to twenty patients using LSVT BIG in about two year’s time.
How has LSVT BIG impacted your practice and your clients?
I am a self-employed clinician working in a private clinic in Hythe, Kent that provides the majority of my patients through their NHS (National Health Service) contract and referrals. I am the only LSVT BIG certified clinician in this region of England, and this clinic is now known for the work I am doing with patients who have Parkinson’s disease. There is a local support group that gathers at the beginning of each month, and they can always tell who is working with me doing LSVT BIG as they return the next month standing straighter and moving bigger with a giant smile.
What do you want to share that would inspire and inform other therapists who are new to LSVT BIG or who are LSVT LOUD therapists?
I would like to inspire UK physiotherapists to help me raise the awareness of the benefits of this programme for their patients with Parkinson’s disease. UK residents are blessed to have a National Health Care System, but there is a big challenge for physiotherapists in offering LSVT BIG to their patients; the NHS limits a patient to half hour sessions, and in my region, we have six opportunities to help any referral for any complaint. When it comes to someone who can benefit from LSVT BIG, this system does not pay for it. When someone who is not accustomed to paying for healthcare out of pocket, the cost of 16 one-hour sessions can be daunting, not only to the patient, but also to the physiotherapist who might just decide to not offer this program before giving the patient the chance to make this decision on their own. I did not let this obstacle bother me. If someone came to me privately or was referred through the NHS for mobility assistance, I simply explained what works best and what it would take to recalibrate their nervous system.
All my patients have a Consultant Neurologist and a regional Parkinson’s Nurse whom they see a few times during the year. The typical experience post diagnosis is to be placed on medications and advised to exercise. These Consultants are now seeing my patients actually improve between visits rather than experience the normal expected decline. My most inspiring patient can be seen on the LSVT global blog’s video section where we tell her story from face planting in her garden to now climbing the tallest peaks in the country. Jackie is so inspiring and has raised nearly £10,000 pounds to help me help those that can’t afford this programme. She has been inspired by me and this program to live her bucket list, challenging herself with a new goal each month. She has parachuted, wall climbed, has been diving, climbed the tallest peaks in the UK, and put together a book of all her achievements so far that I hope will someday be available to inspire others worldwide.
LSVT BIG in action one year later!
She’s at it again! Graduate from over a year ago. From falling down in her garden (face planting as she called it) to bucket list challenges each month. She’s climbing the tallest peak in Scotland soon. Go Jackie!!!
What do you see as your next steps?
I would love to connect with all UK certified clinicians and work together in a grassroots approach to changing the expectations of the needs of those with Parkinson’s disease and how the NHS can pay for it; and if you are somewhere in the world with a similar system that you were able to change, please be in touch and help me achieve this. Thank You! Go BIG
Dr. Morin practices at Physiologic in Hythe, Kent, UK. You can contact Dr. Morin at DrCaryMorin@gmail.com.