College of Health Sciences Honors Panther, Atherton

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 8, 2016) —The University of Kentucky College of Health Sciences this week named alumna Kathy Panther to the Health Sciences Alumni Hall of Fame and welcomed its first Young Alumni Award recipient Lindsay Atherton.

Panther, a 1976 graduate of the Speech and Hearing program, is the current director of Inpatient Rehabilitation and the Brain Injury Program at the Frazier Rehab Institute in Louisville, part of KentuckyOne Health.

“The College of Health Sciences recognizes Kathy Panther’s outstanding professional record, personal reputation, and 30 years of distinguished service in and contributions to the field,” said Scott M. Lephart, Ph.D., dean of the College of Health Sciences. “Her work is innovative and impactful and we are proud to be her alma mater.”

While at KentuckyOne Health-Frazier, Panther and colleagues developed the Free Water Protocol, a practice that improves quality of life for patients with dysphagia by ensuring necessary hydration along with airway protection. Panther, who was the first speech-language pathologist in the United States to implement the protocol, identifies her patients as the motivation behind the effort.

“Listen to your patients and their families. Listen with an open mind and an open heart,” Panther, who received her Master of Science in Communication Disorders from UofL, said. “We changed our practice, which ultimately led to practice change for many clinicians around the world. Positive change came about when we learned to listen [to our patients].” 

Panther and her team have successfully managed thousands of patients in the 30-plus years since the protocol was implemented, and have instructed other health care professionals on using the protocol in hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and long-term care facilities. Her Free Water Protocol and subsequent research, which has been published with ASHA Special Interest 13: Perspectives on Swallow and Swallowing Disorders (Dysphagia) as well as the Advanced Healthcare Network for Speech and Hearing, advances the entire field of speech-language pathology.

Panther’s additional services to the field have national impacts as well. She is a prominent national presenter of accredited continuing education seminars and has served on American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) clinical supervision committees that work toward establishing more formal and consistent training programs for all speech-language pathologists within the health care environment.

Furthermore, Panther maintains strong connections to the Commonwealth and the University of Kentucky. At the state level, she has held multiple positions on the board for the Parkinson Support Center of Kentuckiana, including president and vice president. She was also appointed to a four-year term on the Kentucky Traumatic Brain Injury Trust Fund Board in 2014 by then-Governor Steve Brashear. At UK, Panther took an active role with the College of Health Sciences Dean’s Advisory Board under the leadership of former Dean Lori Gonzalez, participating on committees striving to increase alumni participation as well as committees aiming to increase awareness of the College. Panther’s team also helps train the College’s Communication Sciences and Disorders students at KentuckyOne Health-Frazier Rehabilitation facilities.

“Over the years, many of our students have requested and received clinical training at all Frazier locations and the students’ reports are overwhelmingly positive,” said Donna Morris, associate professor in the Division of Communication Science and Disorders at the UK College of Health Sciences. “Because of Mrs. Panther’s great knowledge and interest in the supervision of students, we are extremely fortunate that she maintains an active role in developing educational opportunities at their sites.”

Panther has twice been awarded the Clinical Achievement Award from the Kentucky Speech-language Hearing Association and was a national nominee from Kentucky for the Di Carlo Award, presented by ASHA for her outstanding clinical work in speech-language pathology.

The College of Health Sciences also welcomed its first Young Alumni Award recipient this year. The award recognizes a CHS alum who graduated within the last 10 years and who has already demonstrated emerging leadership skills and made significant contributions to his or her field. Atherton, a 2011 Clinical Laboratory Sciences graduate and a 2014 Physician Assistants Program graduate, is the first recipient of the Young Alumni Award.

Atherton is currently a physician assistant at UK HealthCare in the Division of Hospital Medicine/Internal Medicine. She manages inpatients on acute, telemetry, and progressive care floors. Atherton also has prior experience as a medical laboratory technician and laboratory assistant at UK Chandler Hospital and UK Good Samaritan Hospital, respectively.

While a student, Atherton was top in her class and received the Dean’s Service Award and the Clinical Laboratory Science Faculty Award. She served as a College of Health Sciences Ambassador and volunteered at the Refuge Medical Clinic.

As a working PA, Atherton remains involved with the Medical Laboratory Science program, guest speaking in multiple MLS courses.

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