Clinical Rotations

Madonna Rehabilitation Hospitals, with locations in Lincoln and Omaha, offers clinical rotations for students in a variety of disciplines:  

• Physical Therapy
• Occupational Therapy
• Speech Therapy
• Recreation Therapy (Lincoln Campus)
• Madonna’s Institute for Rehabilitation Science and Engineering (Lincoln Campus)

Madonna has a tradition of employing the best clinicians in rehabilitation care. To continue this tradition, we collaborate with schools across the country that consistently produce top students.

Madonna Rehabilitation Hospitals requires interviews for students interested in applying for a clinical rotation. In addition, students must be currently enrolled at an accredited school (physical therapy, physical therapist assistant, occupational therapy, occupational therapist assistant, speech therapy, or recreation therapy). For undergraduate or pre-professional students inquiring about shadowing hours, please contact the volunteer office to coordinate these experiences at 402.413.4500 or visit www.madonna.org/volunteer.

Madonna makes final decisions regarding student placement for clinical rotations with emphasis on those students expressing goals and objectives similar to our core values and expertise. If you are a student interested in completing a rotation at one of our facilities, please check with your school first to verify that there is an established contract. If there is a contract, please request that your school contact the appropriate clinical coordinator listed below to request an affiliation. If you represent a university looking to establish a clinical rotation, please contact the appropriate clinical coordinator listed below.

If selected for an inpatient clinical rotation, possibilities of team placement could include:

• Acute rehabilitation Lincoln Campus – spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, or stroke 
• Acute rehabilitation Omaha Campus – traumatic brain injury or stroke
• Specialty hospital with medically complex patients
• Transitional care unit (Lincoln Campus)
• Pediatrics 

If selected for an outpatient rotation, possibilities of team placement might include:

• Outpatient
• Rehabilitation Day Program
• Satellite outpatient sites for orthopedics or industrial rehabilitation (Lincoln Campus)
• Madonna's medically-based wellness center called ProActive. ProActive houses one of the outpatient facilities, aquatic therapy, and a nationally certified cardiac rehabilitation program.

One of the more unique experiences available to students is the opportunity to participate in an integrated clinical and research project with Madonna’s Institute for Rehabilitation Science and Engineering.

Groundbreaking technology, combined with a strong research and clinical team, form the backbone of our three Centers of Excellence:

• The Movement and Neurosciences Center
• The Communication Center
• The Rehabilitation Engineering Center

The Research Institute has pioneered clinical affiliations, which include an integrated clinical collaboration with top universities. Currently, Judith Burnfield, PT, Ph.D., collaborates with multiple academic institutions and her students have participated as authors for 12 manuscripts and 50 abstracts to date. Physical and occupational therapy students are involved in unique, 16-week hybrid rotations that include a split between patient care and clinical research.