Physical Therapists

Summary

Pediatric Physical Therapist provides evaluation, treatment, and ongoing therapeutic services to infants, children, and adolescents with developmental, neuromuscular, orthopedic, and/or genetic conditions. The therapist works collaboratively with families, caregivers, and interdisciplinary teams to support each child’s functional independence, mobility, and quality of life.

Key Responsibilities

• Evaluate motor development, strength, balance, coordination, posture, and mobility in pediatric patients
• Develop and implement individualized treatment plans based on clinical findings and family goals
• Provide therapeutic interventions to improve gross motor skills, mobility, balance, and functional independence
• Use play-based, evidence-based therapy techniques appropriate for children
• Educate parents and caregivers on home exercise programs and strategies to support progress
• Monitor patient progress and modify treatment plans as needed
• Maintain accurate, timely documentation in compliance with regulatory and organizational standards
• Collaborate with occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, physicians, educators, and other professionals
• Participate in Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings when applicable
• Ensure a safe, supportive, and engaging therapy environment for children and families
• Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) or Master’s degree in Physical Therapy from an accredited program
• Current state licensure or eligibility for licensure as a Physical Therapist
• Experience working with pediatric populations preferred (clinical rotations or internships acceptable)
• Knowledge of pediatric developmental milestones and conditions
• Strong interpersonal, communication, and organizational skills
• Ability to engage and motivate children of varying ages and abilities

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.
• 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, or appropriate others to plan, implement, or 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, or respiratory or 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.
• Direct, supervise, assess, and communicate with supportive personnel.
• Administer treatment involving application of physical agents, using equipment, moist packs, ultraviolet or infrared lamps, or ultrasound machines.
• Teach physical therapy students or those in other health professions.
• Evaluate, fit, or adjust prosthetic or orthotic devices or recommend modification to orthotist.
• Provide educational information about physical therapy or physical therapists, injury prevention, ergonomics, or ways to promote health.
• Refer clients to community resources or services.
• Conduct or support research and apply research findings to practice.
• Participate in community or community agency activities or help to formulate public policy.
• Construct, maintain, or repair medical supportive devices.
• Direct group rehabilitation activities.
• Inform patients and refer to appropriate practitioners when diagnosis reveals findings outside physical therapy.

Requirements

• Communicate detailed medical information to patients or family members.
• Refer patients to other healthcare practitioners or health resources.
• Develop medical treatment plans.
• Examine patients to assess general physical condition.
• Analyze patient data to determine patient needs or treatment goals.
• Record patient medical histories.
• Monitor patient progress or responses to treatments.
• Evaluate patient outcomes to determine effectiveness of treatments.
• Treat patients using physical therapy techniques.
• Train patients, family members, or caregivers in techniques for managing disabilities or illnesses.
• Collaborate with healthcare professionals to plan or provide treatment.
• Analyze patient data to determine patient needs or treatment goals.
• Enter patient or treatment data into computers.
• Record patient medical histories.
• Process healthcare paperwork.
• Refer patients to other healthcare practitioners or health resources.
• Process healthcare paperwork.
• Test patient heart or lung functioning.
• Examine patients to assess general physical condition.
• Record patient medical histories.
• Establish treatment goals.
• Record patient medical histories.
• Explain medical procedures or test results to patients or family members.
• Supervise medical support personnel.
• Operate diagnostic or therapeutic medical instruments or equipment.
• Treat patients using physical therapy techniques.
• Train medical providers.
• Adjust prostheses or other assistive devices.
• Advise medical personnel regarding healthcare issues.
• Communicate health and wellness information to the public.
• Refer patients to other healthcare practitioners or health resources.
• Conduct research to increase knowledge about medical issues.
• Fabricate medical devices.
• Direct healthcare delivery programs.

Nice To Haves

• Medical condition coding software
• Medical procedure coding software
• MEDITECH software
• Microsoft Excel
• Microsoft Outlook
• Above-the-knee prosthetics
• Adjusting tables
• Advantage Software Physical Therapy Advantage
• Aquacisers
• Arm prosthetics
• Axial-resistance shoulder wheels
• Babinski hammers
• Balance beams
• Balance boards
• Below-the-knee prosthetics
• Biofeedback units
• Biomechanical ankle platform system BAPS systems
• Biometrics video game software
• Blood pressure cuffs
• Bolsters/wedges
• Canes
• Cedaron Dexter Evaluation & Impairment Rating
• Cervical pivots
• Clinicient Insight
• Compression garments
• Computerized dynamic posturography (CDP) balance test systems
• Continuous passive motion CPM machines
• Crutches
• Cryotherapy equipment
• Diathermy equipment
• Digital cameras
• Digital inclinometer range of motion measurement instruments
• Digital video cameras
• Digital video equipment
• Electromyographs EMG
• Electronic blood pressure units
• Electronic manual muscle testers
• Exercise balls
• Exercise bicycles
• Exercise routine creation software
• Fitness machines
• Fluidotherapy equipment
• Force sensors
• Functional electrical stimulation FES equipment
• Gait belts
• Goniometers
• Hands On Technology TheraWriter.PT
• Heart rate monitors
• High-voltage Galvanic stimulation machines
• Hospital roto beds
• Hoyer lifts
• Hydraulic hand dynamometers
• Hydrocollator heating units
• Ice packs
• Infrared lamps
• Interferential electrical stimulation machines
• Inversion physical therapy tables
• Iontophoresis equipment
• Isokinetic lower body testing/rehabilitation equipment
• Isokinetic upper body testing/rehabilitation equipment
• Isotonic exercise equipment
• Knee braces
• Laptop computers
• Laser printers
• Low volt muscle stimulators
• Lumbar pivots
• Massagers
• Mechanical stethoscopes
• MediGraph
• Microsoft Office
• Microsoft Word
• Moist hot packs
• Multiaxial exercise equipment
• Muscle strength dynamometers
• Muscle testing equipment
• Neck braces
• Neurological hammers
• Neuromuscular stimulation equipment
• Occipivots
• Orthotics
• Otoscopes
• Paraffin baths
• Parallel bars
• Patient charting software
• Pelvic traction equipment
• Percussion hammers
• Personal computers
• Phonopheresis equipment
• Portable cardiac monitors
• Powder boards
• Prognosis Innovation Healthcare ChartAccess
• Pulley exercise systems
• Reachers
• Rebounders
• Recordkeeping software
• Rehab Documentation Company ReDoc Suite
• Resistive exercise bands
• Resistive tubing
• Rowing machines
• Sacro-illiac joint lumbar corsets
• Shoulder finger ladders
• Shoulder wheels
• Sliding boards
• SpectraSoft AppointmentsCS
• Standing tables
• Stepper exercisers
• Surface electromyography equipment
• Swiss exercise balls
• Therapeutic treadmill exercisers
• Thoracic pivots
• Tilt tables
• Total lift chairs
• Traction and mobilization physical therapy tables
• Traction belts
• Traction equipment
• Training stairs
• Transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation TENS equipment
• Ultrasound machines
• Ultraviolet UV lamps
• Upper body ergometers
• Walkers
• Walking braces
• Wall pulleys
• Weights
• Wheelchairs
• Whirlpool therapy baths