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”

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

Related Technology & Tools

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

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