Career Profile: Career Profile - Physical Therapists

Salary and Outlook

According to the US Department of Labor, there are 238,800 people employed as career profile - physical therapists in the United States. The median annual salary is $95,620. Entry level employees earn approximately $61,930 per year and senior employees earn approximately $127,110 per year.

Estimates do not include other potential benefits such as health insurance, overtime, or retirement benefits that may be offered by employers.

Job Duties

• Plan, prepare, or carry out individually designed programs of physical treatment to maintain, improve, or restore physical functioning, alleviate pain, or prevent physical dysfunction in patients.
• Perform and document an initial exam, evaluating data to identify problems and determine a diagnosis prior to intervention.
• Refer clients to community resources or services.
• Construct, maintain, or repair medical supportive devices.
• Evaluate, fit, or adjust prosthetic or orthotic devices or recommend modification to orthotist.
• Teach physical therapy students or those in other health professions.
• Conduct or support research and apply research findings to practice.
• Participate in community or community agency activities or help to formulate public policy.
• Direct group rehabilitation activities.
• Evaluate effects of treatment at various stages and adjust treatments to achieve maximum benefit.
• Confer with the patient, medical practitioners, or appropriate others to plan, implement, or assess the intervention program.
• Administer manual exercises, massage, or traction to help relieve pain, increase patient strength, or decrease or prevent deformity or crippling.
• Obtain patients' informed consent to proposed interventions.
• Test and measure patient's strength, motor development and function, sensory perception, functional capacity, or respiratory or circulatory efficiency and record data.
• Direct, supervise, assess, and communicate with supportive personnel.
• Review physician's referral and patient's medical records to help determine diagnosis and physical therapy treatment required.
• Identify and document goals, anticipated progress, and plans for reevaluation.
• Provide information to the patient about the proposed intervention, its material risks and expected benefits, and any reasonable alternatives.
• Provide educational information about physical therapy or physical therapists, injury prevention, ergonomics, or ways to promote health.
• Inform patients and refer to appropriate practitioners when diagnosis reveals findings outside physical therapy.
• Discharge patient from physical therapy when goals or projected outcomes have been attained and provide for appropriate follow-up care or referrals.
• Administer treatment involving application of physical agents, using equipment, moist packs, ultraviolet or infrared lamps, or ultrasound machines.
• Record prognosis, treatment, response, and progress in patient's chart or enter information into computer.
• Instruct patient and family in treatment procedures to be continued at home.

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