I am often asked how I stay on top of so much research and information on the internet. Beisdes, being something I enjoy doing, I am always motivated to further improve myself and never stop learning. These are two of my most admired qualities of physical therapists and something I would include in my career advice for physical therapy students .
It actually isn’t that hard, that is if you know how to take advantage of the web and it’s many great resources. I have been planning on writing an article like this for some time, but have found that Kyle Ridgeway at PT Think Tank has pretty much already done it for me! Kyle has a serious of articles teaching us how to find and stay on top of all the great research and resources on the web for physical therapists and rehabilitation specialists.
The first article takes a look at the current trends of the internet and how you can use RSS feeds to keep track of all your favorite websites, including journals! This is a great place to start if you don’t know what a RSS feed is or how to use them.
The second article focuses on how to set up Google Reader to access all these great feeds and organize them in one great place! Once you understand RSS feeds, you need this free account from Google. It is a must have resource.
The third article discusses the many physical therapy and rehabilitation journals that are available but more importantly has links to access all the journal feeds. Take some time with this post and click the links of all your favorite journals to start setting up your Google Reader account.
The forth article discuss the other area of information on the internet in addition to journals, blogs and websites. There is a great list of blogs to follow to get started (including mine, thanks!). Be sure to follow each of the websites that interest you. You’ll start to realize that you will be accumulating RSS feeds pretty quick, that is great, it is like a snowball! My reader has well over 100 feeds that I follow.
Additional Tips from Mike
I think Kyle did a great job with this information and recommend everyone get started. There are a few additional tips that I would recommend:
Get an app on your phone and iPad to access Google Reader so that you can check out your feeds at anytime. This is how I spend most spare moments! I use Feedler but there are plenty. You can also simply click and share any interesting articles on sites like Twitter and Facebook, which brings me to my next point…
Get on Twitter and Facebook and follow/friend colleagues and people to learn from. I can’t tell you how many awesome professional discussion are going on in addition to sharing of great content.
Many of these websites also have newsletters that provide additional content to subscribers only. If you really like a website, I would subscribe as well (this would be a great time to subscribe to my newsletter if you haven’t already!).
Hope that helps get you started. What else do you do? Please comment and share any other tips you use. There are many great physical therapy resources on the web to take advantage of!
It actually isn’t that hard, that is if you know how to take advantage of the web and it’s many great resources. I have been planning on writing an article like this for some time, but have found that Kyle Ridgeway at PT Think Tank has pretty much already done it for me! Kyle has a serious of articles teaching us how to find and stay on top of all the great research and resources on the web for physical therapists and rehabilitation specialists.
The Web 2.0 and RSS Feeds
The first article takes a look at the current trends of the internet and how you can use RSS feeds to keep track of all your favorite websites, including journals! This is a great place to start if you don’t know what a RSS feed is or how to use them.
Using Google Reader
The second article focuses on how to set up Google Reader to access all these great feeds and organize them in one great place! Once you understand RSS feeds, you need this free account from Google. It is a must have resource.
Rehabilitation Journals to Follow
The third article discusses the many physical therapy and rehabilitation journals that are available but more importantly has links to access all the journal feeds. Take some time with this post and click the links of all your favorite journals to start setting up your Google Reader account.
Physical Therapy Related Blogs
The forth article discuss the other area of information on the internet in addition to journals, blogs and websites. There is a great list of blogs to follow to get started (including mine, thanks!). Be sure to follow each of the websites that interest you. You’ll start to realize that you will be accumulating RSS feeds pretty quick, that is great, it is like a snowball! My reader has well over 100 feeds that I follow.
Additional Tips from Mike
I think Kyle did a great job with this information and recommend everyone get started. There are a few additional tips that I would recommend:
Hope that helps get you started. What else do you do? Please comment and share any other tips you use. There are many great physical therapy resources on the web to take advantage of!