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Becoming A Physical Therapist Essay

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What They Do
Physical therapists provide care to people who have injuries by helping them improve their movement of the injured area or helping ease the patient’s pain caused by the injury. They diagnose patients’ movements by listening to their concerns about the injury and watching their movements involving the area of concern. They help patients rehabilitate the injury by using methods such as stretching, hands-on therapy, and exercises which helps increase mobility and prevent further pain or injury to the area. They record the patient’s progress and tries new treatments as seen fit. They provide care for injuries such as sprains, strains, fractures, arthritis, injuries related to work or sports, and even amputations. The treatment methods used vary from patient to …show more content…

To get a DPT, one needs to enroll in a DPT program, which usually lasts 3 years and requires a bachelor’s degree for admission. Physical therapy programs usually include courses in biomechanics, anatomy, physiology, neuroscience, and pharmacology. Students also complete at least 30 weeks of work in a clinic where they gain supervised experience in different areas such as acute care and orthopedic care. After graduation, physical therapists may opt to complete a clinical residency which lasts about 1 year and provides additional experience in specialty areas. Once completed, therapists can choose to specialize further and complete a fellowship in an advanced clinical area to treat specific injuries.
Work Environment
Physical therapists usually work full time during normal business hours, although some work part time or during weekends and evenings. They can work in offices of physical therapy that also house offices of occupational and speech therapists as well as audiologists. They can also work in hospitals, home healthcare services, nursing and residential care facilities, and offices of physicians.

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