Congressman Ted Budd Tours HPU’s Pro Bono Physical Therapy Clinic

North Carolina Congressman Ted Budd visited High Point University’s Pro Bono Physical Therapy Clinic for the first time on August 9 to discuss the capabilities of the clinic and how it helps the Piedmont Triad community. Forum Patel, left, a second-year physical therapy student, shows North Carolina Congressman Ted Budd, right, how the musculoskeletal MRI machine is used at High Point University’s Pro Bono Physical Therapy Clinic during Budd’s visit on August 9.

HIGH POINT, N.C., Aug. 15, 2022 – North Carolina Congressman Ted Budd visited High Point University’s Pro Bono Physical Therapy Clinic for the first time on August 9 to discuss the capabilities of the clinic and how it helps the Piedmont Triad community.

The clinic is open 40 hours per week to provide equitable health care access for uninsured and underinsured patients in the community. HPU’s Pro Bono Physical Therapy Clinic offers patients expert physical therapy, exercise classes, access to a musculoskeletal MRI machine, a food pantry, a community garden and much more. Second-year Doctor of Physical Therapy students led the tour for U.S. Rep. Ted Budd to show him the community resources shared with patients at the clinic.

“It was my pleasure to tour the High Point University Pro Bono Clinic,” said Budd. “I was thoroughly impressed by the knowledge and professionalism of the students and faculty. This remarkable clinic provides a tremendous opportunity for students to both learn and serve the greater community.”

Alexis Hooks, president of the HPU Pro Bono Student Board, was one of the students who shared how the clinic helps the High Point community. Opportunities like this help prepare students for the future of health care, she said.

“Meeting Congressman Budd was a special experience that gave my classmates and I an opportunity to collaborate on how to further advance our profession,” said Hooks, a student from Manassas, Virginia. “It was very inspiring to hear such kind words from a person with his influence. As president of the Pro Bono Student Board, I look forward to future collaborations with governing officials to continue addressing professional issues related to access.”

Several physical therapy students showed Budd how the clinic helps prevent food scarcity through its community garden and how HPU is addressing health care issues affecting patients in the area.

“Providing our students the opportunity to interact with their elected leaders is an important part of the learning process in the High Point University Doctor of Physical Therapy Program,” said Dr. Lance Mabry, assistant professor of physical therapy. “The students are encouraged to practice bipartisan engagement, finding solutions to challenges facing the physical therapy profession and our patients. “