Will “Physical Therapist Assistants” be Replaced By Robots? 🤔

Job Description

Assist physical therapists in providing physical therapy treatments and procedures. May, in accordance with State laws, assist in the development of treatment plans, carry out routine functions, document the progress of treatment, and modify specific treatments in accordance with patient status and within the scope of treatment plans established by a physical therapist. Generally requires formal training.

Job Details

• The SOC (Standard Occupational Classification) code is 31-2021.00
• The Mean Annual Wage in the U.S. is $ 56,850.00
• The Mean Hourly Wage is $ 27.00
• Currently, there are 85,580 people on this job

Also Known As…

• Staff Physical Therapy Assistant
• Physical Therapy Technician (Physical Therapy Tech)
• Physical Therapy Assistant (PTA)
• Physical Therapist Assistant and Nurse Aide
• Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA)
• Per Diem Physical Therapist Assistant (Per Diem PTA)
• Outpatient Physical Therapist Assistant
• Licensed Physical Therapist Assistant (LPTA)
• Home Health Physical Therapist Assistant
• Certified Physical Therapist Assistant (CPTA)
• Rehabilitation Assistant
• Rehabilitation Aide
• Physiotherapy Assistant

Tasks for “Physical Therapist Assistants”

• Assist patients to dress, undress, or put on and remove supportive devices, such as braces, splints, or slings.
• Observe patients during treatments to compile and evaluate data on their responses and progress and provide results to physical therapist in person or through progress notes.
• Prepare treatment areas and electrotherapy equipment for use by physiotherapists.
• Attend or conduct continuing education courses, seminars, or in-service activities.
• Perform postural drainage, percussions, or vibrations or teach deep breathing exercises to treat respiratory conditions.
• Fit patients for orthopedic braces, prostheses, or supportive devices, such as crutches.
• Confer with physical therapy staff or others to discuss and evaluate patient information for planning, modifying, or coordinating treatment.
• Measure patients' range-of-joint motion, body parts, or vital signs to determine effects of treatments or for patient evaluations.
• Instruct, motivate, safeguard, and assist patients as they practice exercises or functional activities.
• Administer traction to relieve neck or back pain, using intermittent or static traction equipment.
• Transport patients to and from treatment areas, lifting and transferring them according to positioning requirements.
• Administer active or passive manual therapeutic exercises, therapeutic massage, aquatic physical therapy, or heat, light, sound, or electrical modality treatments, such as ultrasound.
• Monitor operation of equipment and record use of equipment and administration of treatment.
• Train patients in the use of orthopedic braces, prostheses, or supportive devices.
• Communicate with or instruct caregivers or family members on patient therapeutic activities or treatment plans.
• Perform clerical duties, such as taking inventory, ordering supplies, answering telephone, taking messages, or filling out forms.
• Clean work area and check and store equipment after treatment.
• Secure patients into or onto therapy equipment.

Related Technology & Tools

• Ankle-foot orthotics
• Iontopheresis equipment
• Patient positioning devices
• Cardiac monitors
• Paraffin baths
• Pick-up walkers
• Total lift chairs
• Swiss exercise balls
• Interferential electrical stimulation machines
• Electromyographs EMG
• Rotating bed
• Powder boards
• Standing tables
• Functional electrical stimulation FES equipment
• Ultrasound machines
• Whirlpool therapy baths
• Knee braces
• Goniometers
• Hi-lo manipulation tables
• Gait belts
• Exercise trampolines
• Stretchers
• Sliding boards
• Upper-body isokinetic machines
• Back braces
• Blood pressure cuffs
• Pulse oximeters
• Protective gowns
• Sacro-illiac joint lumbar corsets
• Platform walkers
• Cervical traction equipment
• Hand grips
• Mechanical stethoscopes
• Free weights
• Hydrotherapy pools
• Tilt tables
• Crutches
• Medicine balls
• Resistive exercise bands
• Reciprocating walkers
• Hoyer lifts
• Tablet computers
• Reflex hammers
• Safety goggles
• Balance beams
• Cold packs
• Splints
• Wrist splints
• Sequential compression devices
• Pelvic traction equipment
• Transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation TENS equipment
• Safety gloves
• Hemi walkers
• Inclinometers
• Quad canes
• Ultraviolet UV phototherapy lamps
• Ergometers
• High-voltage Galvanic stimulation machines
• Personal computers
• Front-wheel walkers
• Lavage hydrotherapy equipment
• Plumb lines
• Wheelchairs
• Short wave diathermy devices
• Reachers
• Arm prosthetics
• Portable oxygen equipment
• Desktop computers
• Stationary bicycles
• Below-the-knee prosthetics
• Medical nasal cannulae
• Therapeutic treadmill exercisers
• Single point canes
• Intermittent compression units
• Posture grids
• Standing cages
• Above-the-knee prosthetics
• Digital video cameras
• Surgical masks
• Balance boards
• Continuous passive motion CPM equipment
• Notebook computers
• Automated external defibrillators AED
• Mechanical percussors
• Parallel bars
• Digital cameras
• Slings
• Lower-body isokinetic machines
• Therapeutic hot packs
• Body-fat calipers
• Massage equipment

• Accounting software
• Laboratory information system LIS
• Virtual reality game software
• FileMaker Pro
• BioEx Systems Exercise Pro
• Microsoft Windows
• Summit Software CarePoint
• TherAssist
• Email software
• Knees Software PT DocTools
• Video game software
• dBASE
• SpectraSoft AppointmentsPRO
• Billing software
• Microsoft Outlook
• Rehab Documentation Company ReDoc Suite
• Client caseload management software
• PhysioGraphic
• Spreadsheet software
• Eazy Application Systems QuickEMR
• Microsoft Access
• Beaver Creek Software The THERAPIST
• SpectraSoft DocuPRO
• PhysioTools Tools RG
• Word processing software
• Bookkeeping software
• Arena Health Systems Phys-X
• Microsoft Excel
• Scheduling software
• Microsoft Office