Our Story

The Full Story

Cogent Physical Rehabilitation Center was founded in 2023 by Dr. Folarin Babatunde, a physiotherapist, clinician, teacher and researcher with a passion for bridging the gap between physiotherapy research evidence and clinical practice.

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Folarin's Physiotherapy journey began in 2001 when he graduated from the premiere Bachelors Degree in Physiotherapy program at the University of Ibadan. He completed his Physiotherapy internship at Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria and learned under Prof Isaac Owoeye, one of the pioneers of physiotherapy in Nigeria. He would go on to complete several community projects in rehabilitation in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria where access to rehabilitation services was sparse. As a lifelong learner, Folarin decided to further his knowledge in the Physiotherapy by completing the Masters degree program in Orthopaedic Physiotherapy from his first alma mater in 2006. Afterwards Folarin worked at Physical Therapy Center Lagos, a private physiotherapy practice specializing in occupational health physiotherapy and functional rehabilitation.

Folarin pursued advanced training in Sports Medicine to deepen his knowledge of exercise physiology and sports injury and graduated from the prestigious University of Nottingham Master of Sports and Exercise Medicine program in 2009. Folarin was fortunate to be tutored by world-renowned sports medicine consultants at Queens Medical Centre, namely; Prof Mark Batt and Prof Angus Wallace. This experience exposed Folarin to a whole new world of musculoskeletal injuries diagnosis and treatment for  injuries sustained during sports like rugby, soccer, basketball, hockey and track and field events and opportunities to volunteer during the FIFA world cup in Johannesburg South Africa and the London Olympic events. Folarin continued his clinical practice in neuromusculoskeletal physiotherapy at the Barlborough NHS Treatment Center, Chesterfield and East Midlands Neurobehavioral Rehabilitation Center, Melton Mowbray in England.

Fast forward to 2012 and Folarin would immigrate to Canada to start a new life with his family. He enrolled in the University of Toronto Internationally Educated Physiotherapists bridging program for internationally trained physiotherapists and successfully became a licensed Physiotherapists in Ontario in 2014. Folarin has contributed immensely to the delivery of patient-centered physiotherapy care to Canadians through his multiple part time and full time roles at St John's Rehab Campus of Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center inpatient and outpatient units: Musculoskeletal Rehab, Geriatric care, Amputee Rehab, Trauma and Burns Rehab, post cardiac, Surgery and Transplant Rehab, Stroke Rehab, cancer rehab, and complex care rehab between 2015 and 2022. Folarin also worked on the inpatient and outpatient Stroke Rehab and Orthopaedic Rehab Units of Hennick Bridgepoint Hospital of Sinai Health System within the same period from 2015 to 2023. These opportunities 

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Upon arrival to Canada, Folarin also rekindled his passion for academic excellence and by pursuing a PhD in Rehabilitation Science at McMaster University under the supervision of Dr. Joy MacDermid. Folarin graduated from the program in 2020 and has contributed to the field of physiotherapy with publications and national and international presentations in the areas of musculoskeletal health, chronic disease, exercise physiology, pain and psychosocial disability, burn rehabilitation, behaviour change and digital health solutions. Folarin always remained passionate about clinical practice and as the world shut down in 2020, Folarin remained dedicated to patient service and was one of the first physiotherapists in Canada that provided rehabilitation services to patients diagnosed with Covid-19 during his employment at St Johns Rehab. Due to the physical rigours and mental stress of the experience, Folarin decided to take a break from clinical practice in 2022 and took up a Limited Term Assistant Professor role on the Master of Physical Therapy Program at Western University in 2022 where he taught clinical education, management of upper quadrant conditions, therapeutic exercise, behaviour change, neuro-rehab, amputee rehab and chronic disease management. Folarin left his academic position to invest his time at Cogent Physical Rehabilitation Center.​

Although, Folarin's scholarly pursuit reflects a commitment to enhancing treatment outcomes and patient experiences in physiotherapy through rigorous research. He believes there is an overwhelming demand for practice-based research and more avenues for translating research evidence to clinic practice. These factors and a desire to share his vast clinical experience inspired Folarin to start Cogent Physical Rehabilitation Center in 2023. Cogent embodies Dr. Folarin Babatunde's vision of translating physiotherapy and rehabilitation research evidence into relevant and pragmatic clinical services across the country. Cogent is dedicated to delivering collaborative and person-centered care that is accessible, evidence-based and empowering to patients as they strive to reclaim their functional mobility and overall well-being.

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