Thomas Bellama

Education

Doctor of Physical Therapy, Northern Arizona University

Bachelor of Science, Arizona State University

Specialties/Certification 

• Certified Orthopedic Specialist by the ABPTS
• Dry-Needling
• Real Time Ultrasound for Rehabilitation

Teaching Focus 

Dr. Bellama teaches across the musculoskeletal curriculum and in the orthopedic residency program. His expertise is in clinical movement analysis, evaluation and treatment of musculoskeletal injuries, and development and implementation of community-based exercise programs.

Professional Interests Focus 

Dr. Bellama is also faculty in the Hartford HeathCare Rehabilitation Network and University of Hartford Orthopedic Residency Program. He contributes to teaching certificate courses, as the primary faculty in entry-level DPT courses where residents begin their teaching component, and guides residents through scholarship.

In partnership with Dr. Cifuentes, he developed the S.O.A.R. Pro-bono Student Experience that is integrated with the musculoskeletal curriculum in the DPT program. This allows for direct patient interaction for DPT students across the curriculum, peer-to-peer clinical mentorship, and clinical instruction of our DPT students by core faculty, modeling the standard of care that is taught in classrooms and labs.

Despite living in Connecticut, he continues his support of physical therapy practice in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) by hosting DPT students in clinical practice for one month each year as part of an elective course. He continues to develop and research injury prevention programming specific to the limited healthcare resources in the CNMI.

His research interests include novel delivery of injury prevention programs, admissions criteria that predict success in DPT education and on the NPTE, and he hopes to begin the validation process of an evidence based running analysis and treatment protocol that he developed and utilized as a clinician.