Classic Outpatient
Orthopedic/Neuro Clinic
My Setting : Outpatient Orthopedic & Sports Speciality Clinic for Runners & Triathletes
- 10-22 patients per day
- 30-45 minutes per patient (some overlap)
- manual treatment, exercise
- modalities
- electrical stimulation, ultrasound, laser, heat, cold
Single Track Program
Hospital / Inpatient Care
- 5-10 patients per day
- 30 mins to 1 hour with each patient
- Specialize in Manual PT (manipulations and mobilizations like chiropractors)
- Attire: anything from athletic clothes to business casual
- Flexible hours in a private practice
Ithaca College
- 3 years to complete B.S. in Clinical Health Studies + 3 years to complete DPT = 6 years
- Accepted as a freshman, option to transfer in
- must maintain adequate GPA, etc throughout
DPT Curriculum
- 8-10 patients per day
- 20-45 minutes per patient (some overlap)
- manual treatment, exercise, modalities
- re-teaching everyday movements (Walking, etc)
- ICU, surgical floors, etc
Home Health
- 4-10 patients per day
- 30-90 minutes per patient
- manual treatment, exercise, modalities
- re-teaching everyday movements (Walking, etc)
Questions You Asked
Graduate School Tracks
Prerequisites
- Take GREs & submit scores
- GPA
- Exposure to PT
- Courses: biology, chemistry, physics, anatomy, physiology; additional dependent on program
- Do you enjoy your job?
- YES!!!!
- Favorite part?
- The patients, the puzzle-solving aspect, constantly moving
- Why did I choose PT?
- Injured right here at Kingsway!
- Tibial stress fracture during field hockey season, had to go to PT
- PT vs med school
- Exercises I do with patients?
- Advanced, athletic patients
- University of Pittsburgh
- 3 years: 9 consecutive semesters
- Hunter College
- 3 years: consecutive semesters
Your Career
Education!
All physical therapists are required to have a Doctorate of Physical Therapy, or "DPT" degree.
Salary can be anywhere from $60,000 to over $120,000.
What is Physical Therapy?
Starting salaries are typically $60,000 to $70,000 but can increase depending on the speciality, setting, etc.
Two Tracks to the DPT degree:
- Complete an undergraduate degree in a science major & apply to a physical therapy graduate program, 7 years total.
- Apply to a single track program that accepts you as a college freshman into a PT program, 6 years total.
- the diagnosis & treatment of injury, disease, or disability by physical and mechanical means
- therapy for the preservation, enhancement, or restoration of movement and physical function
What type of patients you see, how many patients you see per day, and your hours are all largely dependent on the setting.
Clinical Affiliations
Every program is different, but all generally require:
- 4-6 rotations (anywhere from 2-12 weeks)
- variety in setting
What I did at Ithaca College
- Clinical #1 : Recovery PT (outpatient orthopedic clinic)
- New York, NY | 8 weeks
- Clinical #2 : Olean General Hospital (inpatient hospital)
- Olean, NY | 8 weeks
- Clinical #3: Oleander Rehabilitation (rehab facility, neurology)
- Wilmington, NC | 8 weeks
- Clinical #4: Elant Nursing Facility (nursing home)
- Newburgh, NY | 12 weeks
Specialties
Where Can I Work?
National Board Exam
for Licensure
- outpatient clinic
- hospital
- rehab facility
- school
- nursing home
- in a patient's home
- with a team or organization
- travel
- orthopedics
- typical musculoskeletal injuries & disorders, after surgery
- sports
- often overlaps with ortho
- neurology
- stroke, brain injury, spinal cord injury, disorders (ex: MS, cerebral palsy)
- cardiology & pulmonary
- oncology
- aquatics
- hippotherapy
Similar to the Bar Exam for Lawyers & the Board Exams for Medical Doctors (MDs)
A Career in Physical Therapy
Dr. Cathlin Fitzgerald, PT, DPT, CSCS, CAFS