
Bonnie
Virag,
PT, DPT, OCS, ATC, MA
Assistant Professor, Director of Community Engagement
University of Pittsburgh
Bonnie Virag, PT, DPT, OCS, ATC, MA, is Faculty, Assistant Professor and Director of Community Engagement at University of Pittsburgh in the Department of Physical Therapy. She leads community-based learning experiences for hybrid and residential cohorts and is faculty lead at Birmingham Free Clinic, offering free PT services to uninsured patients. She teaches students in the classroom, clinic and community, focusing on social determinants of health, community engagement in PT practice, working with medically underserved populations and professional development and leadership for DPT students. She is dedicated to creating supportive environments in which students and patients can maximize their strengths and optimize their well-being. She champions inclusive, person-centered care and encourages students to implement accessible, equitable health care practices for all individuals. She currently is a member of the leadership team for the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) Academy of Leadership and Innovation Global Health Special Interest Group. She also sits on a national task force to address how content related to social and structural determinants of health is delivered within Doctor of Physical Therapy programs.
Dr. Virag is an American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties (ABPTS) Board-Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist and a dual-credentialed PT and certified athletic trainer (ATC.) Her professional career as a physical therapist and certified athletic trainer spans multiple clinical areas of practice including outpatient orthopedics, acute care, subacute rehab and sports medicine in high school, collegiate and professional athletics. She received her DPT degree from the University of Pittsburgh, her Master of Arts in exercise and sport science with an athletic training concentration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and her Bachelor of Science in athletic training from Duquesne University.
Presenting at the Nexus Summit:
This Lightning Talk presents an innovative interprofessional model at the Birmingham Free Clinic in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where students and faculty across diverse health professions collaborate to deliver holistic, patient-centered care. Once a month, teams including Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) and Doctor of Occupational Therapy (OTD) students and faculty, medical students, attending and resident physicians, nurses, pharmacists, AmeriCorps volunteers, interpreters, and community health workers lead team-based assessments and interventions to address patients’ complex medical,…