Deborah E. Lechner, PT, MS

Deborah graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1975 with a BS degree in physical therapy. She later received her post-professional masters from the Massachusetts General Institute in Boston. Lechner is President and founder of ErgoScience, Inc and Research Associate Professor with the Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB).

From 1988 to 1993, she developed and validated a state of the art FCE, the Physical Work Performance Evaluation (PWPE), as part of her research responsibilities at UAB. When the results of the research were positive, the University of Alabama at Birmingham Research Foundation encouraged her to market the evaluation. ErgoScience™ was formed to meet this need. Lechner brings to the FCE process a solid grounding in biomechanics and kinesiology from her experience in a computerized gait analysis and teaching kinesiology. Another powerful influence on her approach to FCE was her graduate training at the Mass General Institute. The program emphasized standardization, objectivity, reliability, and validity in clinical measurement. In the PWPE, as with other ErgoScience™ products and courses, she combines her research background with 25+ years of clinical experience. She has recently developed a job demands analysis process and has assisted her faculty in developing coursework in industrial rehabilitation, AMA impairment ratings, and marketing rehabilitation services. Under her leadership, ErgoScience™ will continue to combine both a clinical and research focus, as well as offering state-of-the-art continuing education.