7. Take a Chance on Your Career with Dr. Kimberly Beran-Shepler

Dr. Kimberly Beran-Shepler joins Maggie and Cara today to discuss her professional journey to academia. The three discuss work-life balance with a family, terminal degrees in the field, interprofessional education, and why taking a chance on your career may be worth it. Kimberly Beran-Shepler, PT, DPT, OCS Kimberly is a 2006 graduate of Creighton University's DPT program and a 2007 graduate of Creighton University’s Orthopedic PT Residency. She is a Board Certified Specialist in Orthopedics and serves on the Accreditation Services Committee for the American Board of Physical Therapy Residency and Fellowship Education (ABPTRFE). Kimberly is a Distinguished Scholarship Fellow in the National Academies of Practice (NAP) where she is serving as the co-chair for the communication committee. She is also a second-term secretary for the National Interprofessional education consortium (NIPEC). Kimberly began her career as an outpatient orthopedic physical therapist in the Denver area. She practiced and managed a private practice clinic for about 7 years before making the switch to academia. She began her academic career at Trine University in northeast Indiana where she served as as a full-time faculty member and the founding Director of Clinical education. In 2017, Kimberly was offered a teaching position at Creighton University and has been there ever since. Currently, she teaches upper extremity musculoskeletal courses, serves on the clinical education team, and coordinates the orthopedic residency. In addition, she is the Interprofessional Education (IPE) Passport Director, which is the IPE curriculum for all Creighton Health Science learners. Kimberly and her husband, Dustin, have two sons: Grayson who is 9 and Jaxson who is 6 years old.