Physical Therapist Assistants And Aides Career Opportunities

P hysical Therapist                are in nursing care facilities,    Assistants and Aides work       physician's offices, home health   with a supervising physical     care services or outpatient care   therapist to perform parts of         centers.                           physical therapy procedures and                                          related tasks selected by the         While physical therapist aides     supervising PT. Their work            are trained on the job, physical   involves exercises, massages,         therapist assistants usually earn  electrical stimulation, paraffin      an associate degree from an        baths, hot and cold packs,            accredited physical therapist      traction, and ultrasound.             assistant program.                                                                                          Responsibilityes generally            There were 238 accredited          include keeping the treatment         physical therapist assistant       area clean and organized and          programs in the United States in   preparing for individual              2004. Physical therapist           patient's therapy. Duties may         assistant programs last two        also include some clerical tasks,     years. They finish with an         depending on the size and             associate degree. Course work      location of the facility.             includes algebra, anatomy and                                            physiology, biology, chemistry,    Over 100,000 physical therapist       and psychology. They may also      assistants and aides are working      include anatomy and physiology.    in the U.S. About 59,000 jobs are     Employers typically require        for physical therapist                physical therapist aides to have   assistants, and physical              a high school diploma.             therapist aides hold about 43,000                                        jobs. Sixty percent of jobs are       Not all states require licensure   in hospitals or in offices of         or registration for a physical     physical therapists. Other jobs       therapist assistant to practice.   The states that require licensure     Demand will rise with the          stipulate specific educational        increasing number of individuals   and examination criteria.             with disabilities or limited       Additional requirements may           function.                          include certification in                                                 cardiopulmonary resuscitation         How much do Physical Therapist     (CPR) and other first aid and a       Assistants and Aides earn?         minimum number of hours of                                               clinical experience.                  As of May 2004 average annual                                            earnings of physical therapist     Physical Therapist Assistants and     assistants were $37,890. The       Aides must be able to:                lowest earnings were less than                                           $24,110, and the highest earnings  •give exercises, massages,            were more than $52,110.            electrical stimulation, paraffin                                         baths, hot and cold packs,            A Day in a Physical Therapist      traction, and ultrasound,             Assistants and Aide's Life:        •report the outcome of each                                              treatment to the physical             On a typical day a physical        therapist,                            therapist assistant or aide will:  •keep the treatment area clean                                           and organized,                        •help with exercises, massages,    •prepare the treatment area for       electrical stimulation, paraffin   each patient's therapy,               baths, hot and cold packs,         •perform some clerical tasks.         traction, and ultrasound,                                                •lift patients,                    Employment for physical therapist     •record the patient's responses    assistants and aides is expected      to treatment,                      to grow much faster than the          •report the outcome of each        average for all occupations.          treatment to the physical          therapist,                                                               •keep the treatment area clean        I hope this article gives you a    and organized,                        good idea of what is involved in   •prepare the room for the next        the career of a Physical           patient's session,                    Therapist Assistants or Aide.      •push the patient in a wheelchair     Health care is the largest         or provide them with a shoulder       industry in the world. In the      to lean on,                           U.S. about 14 million people work  •perform some clerical tasks,         in the health care field. More     •order depleted supplies, answer      new wage and salary jobs are in    the phone, and filling out            health care than in any other      insurance forms and other             industry. (Some figures from       paperwork.                            Bureau of Labor Statistics.)       About the Author: Mike Clark is the director of Health Care Hiring (http://www.healthcarehiring.com) an online portal to the health care and medical community. Check out this website to find out more about career & training opportunities, and nationwide employer contact information, in the health care and medical sector. Read more articles by: Mike Clark Article Source: www.iSnare.com