Investigators
Investigators
are scientists devoted to research - developing preliminary data, testing procedures and developing hypotheses.
Listed below are the investigators and research highlights of Virginia Commonwealth University's Department of
Physical Therapy.
Dixie Bowman, PT, Ed.D.
Research interests are in
the areas of assessment, professional development and excellence in teaching and learning.
Lisa Donegan Shoaf, PT, Ph.D.
Research
interests include professional issues, clinical education models, low back pain and sports medicine.
Stacey C. Dusing, PT, Ph.D.
Research interests include the development of head and trunk control in young infants, physical therapy
interventions and motor development of infants born prematurely, motor development of children with lysosomal
storage disorders, and children with hearing impairments.
Sheryl Finucane, PT, Ph.D.
Research interests
include musculoskeletal tissue healing and adaptation to exercise. Finucane teaches in the
Rehabilitation and Movement
Science Ph.D. program.
Cheryl Ford-Smith, PT, M.S., N.C.S.
Research
interests include fall prevention in the elderly, reliability of balance evaluation tools, treatment intervention
for balance and vestibular rehabilitation.
Dianne Jewell, PT, Ph.D., C.C.S., F.A.A.C.V.P.R.
Research interests include determinants of practice variation in physical therapy, regulatory and market influences
on physical therapy service delivery, professional performance and clinical outcomes, and impact of cardiopulmonary
dysfunction in patients with orthopaedic or neurological impairments. Jewell teaches in the
Health Related Sciences Ph.D. program.
Thomas P. Mayhew, PT, Ph.D.
Research interests include
measurements of muscular and functional performance in pediatric and adult patients with neuromuscular disease,
and muscular adaptation to exercise.
Lori Michener, PT, Ph.D., A.T.C., S.C.S.
Research
interests include orthopaedic physical therapy, sports medicine, mechanisms of shoulder and cervical spine
dysfunctions, treatment outcomes of patients with shoulder and cervical dysfunctions, diagnostic accuracy and
effectiveness of treatment programs. Michener teaches in the
Rehabilitation and Movement
Science Ph.D. program.
Peter Pidcoe, PT, Ph.D.
Research interests include
biomechanics and motor control aspects of human motion in sports medicine, pediatrics and elite performance
settings, the quantitative assessment and design of therapeutic interventions in orthopaedic treatment settings,
and the design and construction of specialized research equipment. Pidcoe teaches in the
Rehabilitation and Movement
Science Ph.D. program.
Daniel Riddle, PT, Ph.D., F.A.P.T.A.
Research interests
include psychometric properties of measurements in orthopaedic physical therapy, outcomes in orthopaedic physical
therapy, low back pain, and foot and ankle. Riddle teaches in the
Health Related Sciences Ph.D. program.
Mary Snyder Shall, PT, Ph.D.
Research interests
include fine motor control, extra ocular motor units, compartmentalization of skeletal muscle, vestibular afferent
input to extra ocular and spinal cord innervated muscles.
Emma Wheeler, PT, M.S.
Research interests include risk
factors for falling in the elderly, therapeutic modalities, clinical education and the use of admission data to
enhance recruitment and predict success in the Doctor of Physical Therapy program.
