Thinking about attending a conference this year but having trouble justifying the costs? Aside from a wonderful opportunity to meet and connect with likeminded individuals, conferences can provide you with an invaluable wealth of knowledge that can help your clinic, staff, and patients.
Still not convinced? We’ve got 4 reasons why you need to attend a physical therapy conference this year!
Expand Your Network
You’re only as good as the people you’re surrounded with. Expanding your network does more than just improve your social life. Conferences help you expand your knowledge network. By having a broad network of physical therapists, you increase your knowledge base, your referral base, and it gives you a sense of community.
You’ll talk to physical therapists of all types, levels, and skill sets. From CEOs to leading researchers, there’s no shortage of practitioners and clinicians that you’ll meet that can help you expand your knowledge and network base.
Learn the Latest Research in Your Field
Whether you’re a general physical therapist or have a specific area you specialize in, conferences allow you to learn about the cutting edge research in your area of expertise. Additionally, conferences help you expand your knowledge base to areas outside of your current to help you better treat your patients.
Disseminate Your work
You probably collect and analyze data on a regular basis; whether in a formal or informal manner, you’re budding with data. Attending a conference allows you to take this data and apply and present it. By being able to present original research to a crowd doesn’t just give you a sense of accomplishment, it also gives others a chance to benefit from your learnings. You’ll be able to discuss your findings with others and potentially make new connections in your research that you may have not seen before.
Become a Better Healthcare Provider
Conferences are often divided up into learning and talk sessions. These sessions can vary from leadership to management to compliancy and more. You will be able to attend a variety of lectures, talks, and sessions that allow you to collect and utilize a vast wealth of knowledge. Be sure to grab a notepad! While some conferences offer keynote speaker recordings to take home with you, many do not. Bring back the knowledge and information you’ve gathered at the conference to your staff to help them improve their knowledge and skills.