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Timeline

Kinesiotherapy History Timeline

April 15, 1943 The first school to qualify personnel in the “corrective physical rehabilitation” was organized at the 307th Station Hospital (U.S. Army) in Coventry, England.
May 18, 1946 VA Circular No. 121, established Corrective Therapy (or Corrective Physical Rehabilitation [CPR]) as part of Medical Rehabilitation Services providing an integrated program of Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Education retraining and shop retraining.
1946 John Eisele Davis, Sc.D., held the post of Chief, Corrective Therapy, in VA Central Office.
October 18, 1946 The inaugural training course for Veterans Administration (VA) Corrective Physical Rehabilitation (CPR) was conducted at the School on Social Rehabilitation in Topeka, Kansas, at the Winter VA Hospital.
October 29, 1946 Association of Physical and Mental Rehabilitation (APMR) was initiated at the Jay Hawk Hotel in Topeka, KS. (It was formally founded by Dr. John E. Davis.)
January 13, 1947 The second training course for 40 CPR therapists was held at the Winter VA Hospital in Topeka, KS.
March 1947 The first issue of the Journal of the Association was published.
1948 The term “Corrective Therapy” replaced the phrase “Corrective Physical Rehabilitation” in the VA rehabilitation program.
1949 Chapter Delegates (then called “Representative Assemblymen”) were introduced into the Association as part of the voting Board of Governors.
1949 – 1950 President Raymond W. Swanson published the first reported association newsletter.
July 1951 The APMR Awards were first introduced and approved during the 1951 Annual Conference in Los Angeles, CA. These earliest awards included: The John Eisele Davis Award, Conference Chairman Award, Honorary Membership and Sustaining Membership.
May 20, 1953 The Association became incorporated in the State of New York, and the charter and corporate seal were received by the President, Louis Montovano.
July, 1953 Mr. Thomas J. Fleming was selected to chair a committee to develop the APMR certification procedure. (By July, 1954, approximately 70% of active APMR members were certified by grandfathering.)
1953 A Code of Ethics was developed and adopted by APMR for a 2-year trial basis.
July 1, 1955 The official definition of corrective therapy was adopted by the Board of Governors which stated: “Corrective Therapy is the application of the principles, tools, techniques and psychology of medically oriented physical education to assist the physician in the accomplishment of prescribed objectives.” (Reportedly composed by Edward Friedman, and remained unchanged until 1985.)
November 30, 1955 The first certification exam was developed.
June 1956 The first certification exam is given.
July 1959 Dr. John E. Davis was elected to the newly established position of Executive Director of the Association.
1960 Eastern Washington State College in Cheney, WA, under the leadership of Dr. Jack R. Leighton, applied for and was granted the first accredited status by the APMR.
1964 The “Introductory Handbook to Corrective Therapy and Adapted Physical Education” was written by Earl W. Mason and Harry B. Dando. It was later edited and rewritten by John R. Murphy, Jr. and Karl K. Klein and offered for sale to all corrective therapists and interested parties.
July 8 – 14, 1967 The APMR became the American Corrective Therapy Association (ACTA), during the Board of Governors meeting.
1973 The VA medical centers in Chicago, including Hines, Chicago Lakeside, Chicago Westside and North Chicago helped create a novel CT clinical affiliation with the University of Illinois, Chicago Circle campus. Jim Descourourez, Associate Professor of Physical Education at the university, coordinated the program.
May 23, 1974 VA Central Office up-graded all VA clinical training programs in corrective therapy from 240 clock hours to 400, effective July 1, 1976.
April 4-5, 1978 A task force of ACTA and VACO Personnel met in VA Central Office to initiate a project on the VA Corrective Therapy Qualification Standards. CT participants included: Oral Mathison, Kirk Hodges, David Ser, Andrew Murphy and Warren Smith.
June 30, 1979 The first ACTA Continuing Education Certificates were issued to those individuals who had earned a minimum of 5 CEU’s during the preceding 3-year period.
July 1980 The ACTA Board of Governors approved new accreditation procedures, including:
1. Maintenance of a 3.0 GPA in required coursework prior to involvement in clinical training.
2. Students must be Physical Education or CT majors in ACTA accredited university.
3. Minimum of 1,000 hours of clinical training.
4. Percentages of clinical experience would be mandated in a variety of categories.
July 1982 The Council on Professional Standards, ACTA, was organized to Coordinate the three groups of the Association which deal with Certification, Accreditation and Continuing Education.
Oct. 27 – 29, 1983 The newly formed Council on Professional Standards met in Toledo, Ohio, for the first time, for a “Work Meeting”. The Following representative participated in the meeting: Keith Orie and James Husing (Certification), Grace Clarke and Steve Figoni (Continuing Education), Leonard Greninger and Cheryl Gooding (Accreditation).
May 17 – 18, 1986 The Council on Professional Standards met again in Toledo, Ohio. One of the new policies was the mandatory Continuing Education Units required for maintaining certification status.
July 1987 A motion was made and passed to rename the ACTA to the “American Kinesiotherapy Association” (AKTA) and rename the journal “Clinical Kinesiology”
January 11, 1988 Ms. Gail S. Shaffer, Secretary of State of New York, formally confirmed the name of the Corporation to be officially the American KinesiotherapyAccociation, Inc. Mr. Raymond J. Powers, Attorney at Law, represented the Association, while ACTA President Jerome Brown and Secretary Anita Schafer signed the documents.
1987 – 1988 The Council on Professional Standards (COPS) adopted an Equal Employment Opportunities statement into its By-Laws.
1987 – 1988 COPS stated that a “certified member in good standing will be referred to as a Registered Kinesiotherapist.” Certification is a one-time process, but being maintained on a “registry” demands maintenance of continuing education credits and payment of annual fees.
July 1989 A new logo was designed and approved for use on stationary, arm patches and other association promotional materials.
November 16, 1990 In an Executive Board meeting in Dayton, Ohio, certain elected association officers (President, President-Elect, First Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer) were made two-year appointments.
May 1991 The Association celebrated its first formal “Kinesiotherapy Week”.
July 1992 The AKTA (COPS) published a “Kinesiotherapy Scope of Practice”, to serve as a guideline for practicing Registered Therapists.
1993 A new “AKTA Mission Statement” was prepared which states: “The mission of the American Kinesiotherapy Association, Inc. (AKTA) is to promote kinesiotherapy by improving recognition of the profession through the pursuit of legislation and public relations. The organization will work to enhance the standard of care provided by kinesiotherapists through educational opportunities.”
July 1993 A new AKTA award was approved by the Board of Governors and named the “Editor’s Award,” for individuals who contribute significantly to the Journal.
April 1995 The Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) formally recognized Kinesiotherapy as an allied health profession. In that same year the American Kinesiotherapy Association and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation joined CAAHEP as co-sponsors of Kinesiotherapy.
April 1997 During the third annual CAAHEP Conference, the Commissioners voted to formally recognize the Committee on Accreditation of Education Programs for Kinesiotherapy.
April 23, 1998 The CAAHEP Executive Board approved The Standards and Guidelines for Accredited Educational Programs for Kinesiotherapy.
2002 Executive Board creates the positions of Eastern States and Western States Members-at-large to replace delegate system and provide representation to all members and to streamline executive board functions.
2003 The AKTA’s journal, “Clinical Kinesiology” goes online.
2004 Strategic plan developed at mid-year conference meeting.
2008 Co-located with MFA for annual conference– San Antonio Texas
2008 “Mobility” goes online
2011 Updated Logo to reflect a more modern design
2011 Centers   of   Excellence   were   established   to   offer   an alternative opportunity to sit for the registration exam
2012 Established  Strategic  Partners  with  American  Council  in Exercise and Medical Fitness Association
2013 Updated  KT  scope  of  practice  to  accommodate  changes in the Kinesiotherapy profession
2014 Established  Strategic  Partners  with  American  Council  of Lifestyle  Medicine,  Medical  Fitness  Network  and  American Kinesiology Association
2015 Updated AKTA Mission statement: “The mission of the AKTA is   to   support   the   rehabilitative   services   of   Registered Kinesiotherapists while promoting the health and wellness of all   populations   including   Veterans   and   individuals   with functional limitations.”
2017 Updated  KT  scope  to improve access to services provided