Job Prospects for a Physical Therapy Assistant

As an assistant to physical therapists, you will provide treatments for your patients under the direction and the supervision of a physical therapist. This profession allows you to work with patients of all ages and from different backgrounds as well. You will help to relieve pain, restore physical function and prevent further disabilities as a result of injuries, loss of limbs and surgery.

You can find employment at various healthcare facilities. Basically, your duties will vary according to your workplace. If you work at a school or fitness center, you will be focusing on preventing injuries and promoting a healthy lifestyle. If you work with the provincial or federal government and industries, then your role will be to improve the employees' health, monitor safety procedures and increase productivity at the work place.

However, if you work in a hospital, a rehabilitation center, a nursing home or an outpatient clinic, you will then be helping the physical therapists to treat their patients. You will be dealing with patients who are in pain or have limited mobility because of arthritis, fractures, cerebral palsy, back pain, injuries, strokes or even old age. You will need to supervise therapeutic exercises such as electrical stimulation, ultrasound and mechanical traction or therapeutic massages to improve the patients' conditions. You will also help to guide the patients on how to use leg braces or crutches and also to teach the patients the right stride and balancing. As a physical therapist assistant, you will need to teach the patients and their loved ones on how to improve physical fitness through healthy and relevant exercises.

As a physical therapist assistant, you will also need to monitor and evaluate the patients' responses to their treatments. Then, you will need to inform the physical therapist of any development or side effects of the therapy sessions. In addition to that, you will be required to undertake administrative responsibilities such as handling insurance claims, ordering supplies and answering phone calls.

If you are a physical therapy assistant, you might want to consider taking care of the elderly. You may opt to work at a nursing home as the pay is higher. Many elderly patients suffer from Alzheimer's and other medical ailments. They might be difficult to handle during the therapy sessions but if you have the patience, empathy and the ability to motivate people then you may give it a try.

Other than that, if you like travelling, you can opt for home care at the patients' homes, a hospital emergency room and residential facilities in a different community. You may even want to join a research center and assist the researchers to come up with improve health care programmes for the patients.

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Physical therapy is a great occupation is a down economy. In addition, the physical pherapy assistant salary is on the rise. To find out more information on becoming a physical therapist assistant, please visit: =>http://physicaltherapyassistanthq.com/

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