Ellicott Center’s Physical Therapist Assistant Bradley Vargo Named PTA Liaison for the Western District of the New York Chapter of the APTA
Mr. Bradley Vargo, PTA, BS, Physical Therapist Assistant at Ellicott Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing since December 2020, has recently been appointed Physical Therapist Assistant Liaison for the Western District of the New York Chapter of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). Mr. Vargo will be active in representing and advocating for physical therapy, working closely with the APTA and local healthcare representation.
Since graduating with a BS in Health and Fitness Training at Daemen College in Amherst, New York in 2015, Bradley Vargo went on to get his Associates Degree on Physical Therapy at Niagara County Community College in May 2019. Mr. Vargo began his career as a Group Exercise Instructor with Catholic Health System in Cheektowaga, New York in January 2016 where he is still an instructor there today. There, Mr. Vargo conducts safe and effective exercises classes for individuals preparing for gastric bypass surgery and other medical conditions. This is done with the intention of educating clients on the importance of exercise and nutrition in order to keep and maintain a healthy lifestyle after surgeries. Two months following graduation from Niagara Community, Bradley Vargo joined the team at Howard Physical Therapy in Depew in July of 2019 as a Physical Therapist Assistant in an outpatient orthopedic rehabilitation facility. In addition to specializing in physical therapy, Bradley Vargo works with patients in rehabilitation in a group fitness setting and as a personal trainer.
Mr. Vargo was given a New York Physical Therapy Association (NYPTA) Student Participation Award in April 2019, which is given to students from each Physical Therapy and Physical Therapist Assistant program who display strong involvement in NYPTA and APTA activities. He achieved certification in CPR/First Aid from 2017 to 2019 and from 2016 to 2020, Mr. Vargo is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength & Conditioning Association.
In group organizations, Mr. Vargo, since August 2017, is the PTA liaison where he advises local PTA education programs on relevant issues in the PTA profession and addresses concerns of local PTA’s in the Western New York region. Also since 2017, he became a member of the APTA. Prior to this, Bradley Vargo was the Western District Regional Representative of the NYPTA Student Special Interest Group from 2018 to 2019 where he oversaw event planning for Western New York that aims to advocate for the physical therapy profession and network with other physical therapy and physical therapist assistant students.
Mr. Vargo published an article called “Understanding PTAs” in the NYPTA Student Special Interest Group (SSIG) newsletter for the Spring 2019 edition.
