One of the most inspiring stories lost in the pages of history is about Mary McMillan. She is credited to be the very first physical therapist and was the founder of the Association of American Women Physical Therapy (AWPT), now known as the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA).
1880- 1959
“Mother of Physical Therapy”
Early life and Education
She was born in the year 1880, Hyde park, Massechuetts. After her basic education she studied in College of Physical Culture, Liverpool where she took up a two year course in physical education.
With her interest towards healthcare and medicine she visited London to study further about neuroanatomy, neurology and psychology.
The Journey to US.
During the outbreak of the First World War, she applied for the Voluntary Aid detachment (VAD) unit in UK but failed the medical examination.
She later decided to travel to Boston. With her knowledge in physical education and medicine, she was sworn in to work at the division of Special Hospitals and Physical Reconstruction which was created by the US army for treatment of soldiers during World war 1.
She realised the importance of limb prosthesis and rehabilitation after an increase in disability in war survivors. She also developed expertise in hydrotherapy and physical exercises for rehabilitation of the wounded soldiers.
First Physical Therapy Department
She was later transferred to Walter Reed General Hospital in Washington DC where she established the first Physical Therapy Department. That was the beginning of physical therapy in 1917. She also trained around 200 reconstruction aides (now known as physical therapists) to assist with the war efforts at the Reed college at Portland Oregon.
Post-War
When the war ended, the reconstruction aide program at Walter Reed General hospital was about to dismantle. Mary McMillan and her colleagues wanted to build on the momentum of war, to preserve the resources and expertise gained during the process. Therefore, a letter was sent to almost 800 reconstruction aides both military and non-military to form a professional therapeutic association.
The formation of APTA
Finally the charter for APTAW was formed with Mary as her first elected president. The name was later changed to American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) to encourage membership of Men in the association.
The association worked independently without the direct supervision of physicians.
Founders also came up with the physical therapy journal to encourage more research in PT field. The first research paper was published in the PT Review, in March 1921.
The Journey to China
After WWI, Mary was offered to work in Peking Union Medical College in China where she took charge of the Department of Physical Therapy.
There she got rid of obsolete apparatus at the gymnasium and recruited individuals which could match upto her standards. She also went ahead to setup scholarships to encourage young individuals to apply for the profession.
In November 1,1941, all Americans where urged to evacuate Peking, China on the verge of rising tension towards war. On her way back to the states, Mary was left in Manila, Phillipines with other 13000 americans with no chance of sailing before December 20, 1941.
Her role during World war 2
On December 7th, Pearl harbor was bombed. She volunteered to offer her services in the Army Hospital at Manila to assist the wounded soldiers on arrival.
On christmas eve, the Japanese captured Manila. Knowing that she will be taken as a POW by the Japanese army, she drove a truck with 3 other women to the Army hospital to collect drugs, instruments and other medical equipments which could help her to service the wounded in the Prisoner Internment camp at Santo Tomas.
Repatriation to US.
Mary was repatriated back to US in 1943 as the liberation of prisoners and their families had started once the US army gained control over the camp. She continued to be a source of inspiration and motivation and helped to setup the World Confederation of Physical Therapy (WCPT) until her death in 1959.
Though there were many independent practices in the PT field all around the globe during that era. The collective conscinece among the physiotherapists grew with the efforts of Mary Mcmilan who trained professionals across three continents and didn’t let the profession die post war.
Her relentless dedication and commitment towards helping people through physical therapy in the times of adversity still remains a source of inspiration among the physiotherapy community.
Sources
- The majority of this re-telling of Mary McMillan’s history has been pulled from her speech in 1946, entitled “Physical Therapy from the Embryo on Three Continents.”
- Pagliarulo, Michael A., Introduction to Physical Therapy. (Third Edition). (2007). (Pp.15-17)
- https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santo_Tomas_Internment_Camp
- https://ptthinktank.com/2017/04/27/badassmary/
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