Karen Vanetten, PT, DPT, MS, OCS, OLY

Karen VanEtten, PT, DPT, MS, OCS, OLY, is a physical therapist at MSU Health Care Physical and Occupational Therapy. Dr. VanEtten received her doctorate in physical therapy from The Ohio State University and then earned her board-certified orthopedic clinical specialty while working with The Ohio State University Wexnar Medical Center’s Sports Medicine department. While with OSU, she served as a clinical and didactic faculty member for the Orthopedic Physical Therapy Residency program and was heavily involved with the knee and shoulder specialty outcome teams. VanEtten also added a master’s degree in research design in health and rehabilitation sciences from Ohio State, with the majority of her research work focusing on outcomes after knee surgery. Most recently, Dr. VanEtten served as the Rehabilitation Director for Oak Hammock at the University of Florida.
Prior to her career in physical therapy, VanEtten (then Thatcher) was a member of the US Women’s National …Hockey Team from 2006-2013. She is a two-time World Champion (2008, 2009), a three-time Four Nations Cup champion (2008, 2011, 2012), and an Olympic Silver Medalist (2010). She also spent two years coaching the NCAA Division 1 women’s hockey team at Providence College, her alma mater, prior to returning to physical therapy school. Dr. VanEtten credits her time as an athlete and a coach as the driving factor for her decision to pursue a career in orthopedic physical therapy.