College of Health Sciences Award Recipients

Distinguished Alumna of the Year Award

Helene Steinmiller Fearon, PT ’78
Phoenix, Ariz.

Helene has done as much for the profession of physical therapy as she has for the patients who visit her private practice. Her tireless national advocacy has raised the profession's profile and helped improve the way physical therapists are paid for their services.

Helene's passion has inspired her to "bring to others the fire of enthusiasm for participation in all aspects of physical therapy." For 25 years she represented the profession by working with the American Medical Association to create and manage billing codes for medical services (CPT codes). She was appointed to serve on the AMA's CPT Editorial Panel and later its executive committee, positions never before held by a physical therapist.

"This work was important because it facilitated a better understanding of the profession of physical therapy, its impact on patients' recovery and management of function," Helene says.

Helene is actively involved in the American Physical Therapy Association at both the national and state levels. In addition, she served eight years as a governor-appointed member and later president of the Arizona Board of Physical Therapy Licensure. In 2012 the APTA named her a fellow, noting that she had "distinguished herself in the domain of advocacy as the profession's preeminent expert in documentation, coding, billing and payment-related policy issues."

In addition to her private practice in Phoenix that she operates with her husband, Tim Fearon, Helene is also president and partner of Physical Therapy Provider Network of Arizona, a physical-therapist owned network that includes over 160 private practices. From 2003 to 2015, she was a principal in Fearon & Levine, a national consulting firm focusing on practice management and payment policy in the outpatient rehabilitation setting. She has also provided expert testimony in cases involving fraud and abuse regarding outpatient physical therapy.

Helene credits Marquette for providing her a strong start in her faith journey. "My faith is my rock and provides me confidence when I am challenged in life, providing support on my professional leadership path and on my personal path as a wife, mother and friend," she says.

Fun fact: A favorite Marquette memory for Helene is spending one creepy Halloween evening in the cadaver lab studying for a practical exam. "I think that timing speaks for itself!" she says.