jasontaylor 24 let

Job description

Physical Therapist Assistants (PTAs) provide physical therapy treatments and procedures. Based on qualityessay.com and state laws, Physical Therapist Assistants are allowed to: structure treatment plans, conduct routine work, give an account of treatment progress, modify given treatments in line with the status of a patient according to the provisions of the scope of treatment established by a Physical Therapist. The scope of practice for PTAs is three-dimensional. Professional practice that is based on the assistant's discipline, primed by educational training, grounded on evidence, and associated with emerging or existing practice guidelines. The legal scope of PTAs is enshrined in the act of practice given by the state i.e. PTAs are not allowed to offer direct care to patients as it has to be done under the supervision of a Physical Therapist and recorded in the patient’s chart. The personal scope of practice includes all the involvements of a PTA in his line of duty e.g. booking appointments, assisting patients and doing clerical dutiesAs The American Physical Therapist Association claims, the code of ethics for a PTA states that the assistant should at all times try hard to put into practice the principles of excellence, caring, altruism, communication, ethics, accountability, and respect while working in liaison with other professionals in order to attain the desired health and well-being in people and communities.

Education, Certification, and Registration

According to Physical Therapist Assistant: Educational Requirements, for one to become a PTA, he/she ought to study and complete an associate's degree program; also, it is a requirement to be licensed in all states. To get a license, the to-be PTA must pass an exam and is required to continue learning. For one to enter the field of PTA, they can take the associate degree in either a public in-state or a private medical college/university that is accredited by APTA’s CAPTE or Education Management Corporation (EDMC) schools like South University. According to APTA, the associate degree program takes two years and is meant to prepare future PTAs for the national licensure examination. As per 2008 figures, the tuition and fee rates per year for the PTA programs were US$ 7,816 in public in-state schools and US$ 26,493 in private schools. The degree courses for PTAs may include medical terminology, physiology, healthcare law, therapeutic exercises, rehabilitation procedures, and human development (“Physical Therapist Assistant: Educational Requirements,”). For a person to practice as a PTA, they need to be licensed after passing the CAPTE. Some states may also demand occupational certification.

Employment

According to CareerOneStop.org, there were about 78,780 PTA jobs in the USA (4,330 of them in the state of Florida), and this figure is estimated to grow by over 40% to about 110,700 in 2024 (6,070 of these in Florida alone). It is projected further that around 5,470 jobs will be open in the USA with 300 in Florida. Job experience is not a requirement as only skills and knowledge are essential. Beth Greenwood writes on Work.chron.com that a newbie could earn up to US$32,040 whereas a pro-PTA gets US$71,200 per year with the career average wage standing at US$51,040 per annum. Most of the PTAs have an associate degree, but despite the job level, there is a room for advancement with gained experience and continued education. Apprentices can even combine paid-in-job training with classroom lessons.

Professional Activities

A student can join professional bodies like the American Physical Therapist Association, the American Council of Academic Physical Therapists, or the Foundation for Physical Therapists. Usually, these organizations charge registration fees for professional members but are free for students who pay after they start practicing. Some of the professional journals within the field of PTA include the Pediatric Physical Therapy which is free for public members and the Journal of Physical Therapy Education open to learners via ProQuest in Open Door. According to the state regulations in Florida under the governorship of the Florida Board of Physical Therapy, for PTAs to have their licenses renewed, they are required to go through 24-hour CE training in every license renewal year. A professional PTA in Florida in the Florida Physical Therapy Association can apply and register for CE with any listed CE provider by FPTA and then get approved by FPTA. If a CE provider is not approved by FPTA, a member may apply for an individual approval by filling and submitting an Individual Application Form. Members can track their CE hours in a Florida System known as CE Broker. The reqre laid down by the Florida Board of Physical Therapy.

Reflection and a Personal Career Plan

The tasks that I am required to perform as a PTA include encouraging the patients especially in therapy, monitoring the patient’s progress of recovery during therapy, preparing medical reports about patients, engaging actively with the patients during therapy and communicating to the PTs about the patients’ progress. I see myself as a perfect fit in this profession. During my studies, I have gained a lot of knowledge in customer's service, medicine, English Language, therapy and counseling, as well as psychology. This knowledge will come in handy during prognosis and diagnosis as well as treatment of the patients. In addition to the knowledge, I also feel that I have other off-the-book skills that are quite helpful in my career path. These include active listening and monitoring skills. I am socially perceptive, good at speaking, and oriented at quality service delivery.

It is my hope that after graduating with my associate degree, I will begin practicing within a year. My overall career aim is to become a consultant in Physical Therapy. To achieve this, I will need to be open and willing to learn from seniors, take up CE classes immediately I get into practice, enroll for a postgraduate degree within five years and learn by correspondence, and offer exemplary service to patients. These goals can be achieved through positive aggression, open-mindedness, vigorous studies, and inquisition.