Assess, plan, organize, and participate in rehabilitative programs that improve mobility, relieve pain, increase strength, and decrease or prevent deformity of patients suffering from disease or injury.

Other names for Physical Therapists: Home Care Physical Therapist, Kinesiotherapist, Licensed Physical Therapy Assistant (LPTA), Outpatient Physical Therapist, Pediatric Physical Therapist, Physical Therapist (PT), Physiotherapist, Pulmonary Physical Therapist, Registered Physical Therapist (RPT), Rehabilitation Services Director, Sports Physical Therapist, Staff Physical Therapist, Treatment Coordinator,

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

• Patient care beds or accessories for specialty care
• Stair climbers
• Mechanical stethoscopes or accessories
• Electromyography EMG units or accessories
• Therapeutic balls or accessories
• Pivotal traction therapy supplies
• Patient care beds or accessories for specialty care
• Patient lifts or accessories
• Work tables or stations or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy
• Orthopedic traction softgoods for general use
• Orthopedic traction hardware or weights
• Training stairs for rehabilitation or therapy
• Transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation units
• Treadmill exercisers for rehabilitation or therapy
• Ultrasonic therapy apparatus or supplies
• Ultraviolet UV lamps
• Work tables or stations or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy
• Digital camcorders or video cameras
• Walkers or rollators
• Walking braces
• Pulleys or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy
• Weights or sets or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy
• Wheelchairs
• Full body immersion hydrotherapy baths or tanks
• Lower extremity prosthetic devices
• Patient care beds or accessories for specialty care
• Treadmill exercisers for rehabilitation or therapy
• Upper extremity prosthetic devices
• Work tables or stations or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy
• Reflex hammers or mallets
• Balance beams or boards or bolsters or rockers for rehabilitation or therapy
• Balance beams or boards or bolsters or rockers for rehabilitation or therapy
• Lower extremity prosthetic devices
• Mats or platforms for rehabilitation or therapy
• Mercury blood pressure units
• Balance beams or boards or bolsters or rockers for rehabilitation or therapy
• Canes or cane accessories
• Pivotal traction therapy supplies
• Vascular or compression apparel or supports
• Laser printers
• Vestibular motion devices for rehabilitation or therapy
• Continuous passive motion CPM devices or accessories
• Crutches or crutch accessories
• Therapeutic cryo compression therapy systems
• Short wave diathermy units
• Digital cameras
• Cognitive or dexterity or perceptual or sensory evaluation or testing products
• Digital camcorders or video cameras
• Electromyography EMG units or accessories
• Electronic blood pressure units
• Cognitive or dexterity or perceptual or sensory evaluation or testing products
• Exercise balls
• Pedal exercisers for rehabilitation or therapy
• Weight machines for rehabilitation or therapy
• Extremity hydrotherapy baths or tanks
• Force or torque sensors
• Neuromuscular stimulators or kits
• Gait belts for rehabilitation or therapy
• Goniometers
• Cardiac output CO monitoring units or accessories
• Galvanic or faradic stimulators
• Patient care beds or accessories for general use
• Patient lifts or accessories
• Grip strengthener
• Medical hydrocollators or accessories
• Therapeutic heating or cooling pads or compresses or packs
• Infrared lamps
• Electrotherapy combination units
• Work tables or stations or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy
• Electrotherapy combination units
• Lower body resistance machines
• Upper body resistance machines
• Grip strengthener
• Knee braces or hinged knee supports
• Notebook computers
• Galvanic or faradic stimulators
• Pivotal traction therapy supplies
• Electric vibrators for rehabilitation or therapy
• Therapeutic heating or cooling pads or compresses or packs
• Weight machines for rehabilitation or therapy
• Dynamometers
• Cognitive or dexterity or perceptual or sensory evaluation or testing products
• Cervical collars or neck braces
• Reflex hammers or mallets
• Neuromuscular stimulators or kits
• Pivotal traction therapy supplies
• Orthotics or foot care products
• Ophthalmoscopes or otoscopes or scope sets
• Therapeutic paraffin baths or accessories
• Parallel bars for rehabilitation or therapy
• Pelvis or back traction supplies
• Reflex hammers or mallets
• Personal computers
• Personal digital assistant PDAs or organizers
• Ultrasonic therapy apparatus or supplies
• Cardiac output CO monitoring units or accessories
• Powder boards for rehabilitation or therapy
• Pulleys or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy
• Reachers for the physically challenged
• Exercise trampolines
• Resistive exercise bands or putty or tubing or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy
• Resistive exercise bands or putty or tubing or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy
• Rowing machines
• Back or lumbar or sacral orthopedic softgoods
• Wrist exercisers for rehabilitation or therapy
• Work tables or stations or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy
• Patient shifting boards or accessories

Project management software

Office suite software

Accounting software

Action games

Word processing software

Calendar and scheduling software

Analytical or scientific software

Medical software