A physical therapist is a healthcare professional that concentrates on helping patients restore mobility or heal injuries. About a week ago, I sat down with a physical therapist by the name of Matt Ward. Matt is a graduate of John I. Burton High School. After high school, he attended Emory and Henry College for his Bachelor’s Degree. Then, he moved on to East Tennessee State University to obtain his Master’s Degree. Mr. Ward has been a physical therapist for 5 years. He works as a physical therapist at Wellmont Occupational Health Clinic in Norton, VA. When I first scheduled the interview with Mr. Ward, he told me we could meet in his office. However, when I arrived, we agreed that I might benefit more from walking around the clinic while …show more content…
Ward a few different questions. First, I wanted to hear what a day in the life of a physical therapist consisted of. He told me everything he did in a day, how the scheduling process worked, and some of the different injuries he sees every day. I also asked Mr. Ward what he liked, as well as disliked, about his job as a physical therapist. He responded, “I love my job. I love helping people. The hours are great and I get paid vacation. I have healthcare for my family and I make enough to support my family. The only thing I could say I dislike is knowing your patients are in pain and not being able to help them as much as you wish. I can help them heal, but I cannot take away the pain.” The most important question I asked Mr. Ward was what he had learned over the past 5 years as a physical therapist that he did not learn in college. He first responded, “A lot more real life skills than I learned in college.” He proceeded to tell me how he had learned to deal with people, and that every patient is different and you must tailor each session to the specific person. He said, “I’ve learned that you can’t stick strictly to what the manual says to do for an injury, you have to find what works for each patient and customize their session to help them the best you can.” I had not really thought about this before we talked, but now I see how true that is. This interview gave me a real-life experience and showed me what it is truly like to be a physical …show more content…
I have always thought I would love to be a physical therapist, but after just a few minutes in the clinic, I knew it was where I belong. I learned a lot and it was great to hear a different perspective on some things than I had heard before. Mr. Ward was honest when answering my questions, and I feel as though the interview gave me assurance that I am going down the correct career path. It made me excited about my future as a physical therapist. The only thing I would suggest to make this assignment better is to possibly interview two different people using the same questions. This would give two different views, as well as allow the student to be a part of two different environments. I feel like this would eliminate any possible biased opinions and give the student a better feel for the career. Other than that, I really enjoyed this assignment and thought it was extremely
Ever since I was little I have alway been very intrigued about physical therapy. Just the aspect of working with other people, and knowing I’m doing something to help them, interests me. This year on November 21st, I job shadowed with Rotert Physical Therapy, and it turned out to be everything I expected. Working with the children was the highlight of my shadow; it was everything I expected and more.
During the interview, the Physical Therapist I conferred with was very thorough and straightforward in his responses to the questions that were given. I decided to interview another one of my mother’s fellow co-workers, Mr. Stephen Chan, considering his new experiences in the Physical Therapy field. I met with Mr. Stephen Chan at the Kaiser Permanente Outpatient Orthopedic Clinic that is located in Union City. The essential subject matters that we discussed consisted of his Major and Minor in college, the Residency Program that he takes part in, variations of attitudes, and advantages in the workforce.
The role of a physical therapist is to treat patients by teaching them different exercises intended to strengthen or stretch muscles as well as alleviate pain. In addition they consult with patients about their symptoms and develop a rehabilitation plan. Often times physical therapists work with patients who have just came out of surgery.
“With her sweet voice, magical hands, technical precision and absolute determination, Renee put me back together, and I’m golfing again,” states Elyse Wolf, a patient of a physical therapist (Our Equipment). With the help of Wolf’s physical therapist, she was able to golf again. Physical therapists help people recover from injuries and disability health crises. As one prepares for a future in the field of physical therapy, one must consider the job, the educational requirements, the work environment, the wages and benefits, and the potential for the advancement of a physical therapist.
“Your job as an aide is to make sure all the patients are attended to without compromise, maintaining the flow of the clinic, and that you represent not just yourself anymore, but the entire physical therapy staff”. I was told these words on my first day as a physical therapy aide. Since this was my first experience in a Physical therapy setting, it made me afraid of the therapist who spoke the words to me, and of the job requirements ahead of me. Overtime, these words set me on the path to learning the important values necessary to be a successful physical therapist. Values such as professional demeanor, accountability, and striving to give the best effort to help the patients were the main points the therapist emphasized in his words to me. All these values had one main goal, and that was so the patient can receive the best possible care. These values stuck
Physical therapy has recently become one of the most sought out professions, which is why it is now even that much harder to become one. A physical therapist is one who will provide treatment for one to maintain or restore maximum movement; while it is a fascinating profession this research essay will not focus on the actual profession. Physical Therapy is obviously associated with injuries, but let’s discuss the schooling behind the profession, how long do you assist a seasoned Physical Therapist, and what is the salary for a physical therapist.
My journey to pursue an education in physical therapy actually originates from my early childhood. I endured a very impoverished upbringing and my family’s socioeconomic status was below the poverty line. At a very young age, money became the central issue of my life. I found myself worrying about mortgages, health bills, and grocery money. As I grew older, I vowed to myself that I would not endure my family’s financial burdens into my adulthood. I knew the best way to accomplish this was by obtaining a college degree and having a professional career. However, I was unsure what career I wanted to pursue. I experimented with many different career ideas, but during my sophomore, I discovered my passion and skill for physical medicine. For my
The experience I had interviewing for the first time was extremely daunting but at the same time, eye-opening as it made me realise how essential a skill like this is to have and practice as an occupational therapist. It is a skill that requires time to develop and to craft, but is vital in building a therapeutic alliance between the client and the therapist. I carried out two different interviews, The Occupational Circumstances Assessment Interview Rating Scale (OCAIRS) and Canadian Occupational Performance Model (COPM), as the interviewer and also acted as the interviewee so I could gain insight into what such an experience would be like from the client’s perspective. The aim of both interviews was to assess the client and assessment proves to be a critical part of the OT process.
With the help of my family and employers, I resign from my job and enrolled into the University of Houston-Clear Lake. They motivated me into taking the first step into my professional career in where I achieved my bachelor’s degree in Fitness & Human Performance. It was there that I was given the opportunity to do my internship at Proactive Physical Therapy (PPT) and see hands on what to expect in a PT setting. To be a part of someone’s rehabilitation journey, from the moment you first see them at their initial evaluation, to when they are graduating and being discharged, is an incredible feeling to be a part of. A Physical Therapist often encounter patients that are at the lowest point in their life in which they would have to teach, coach, listen and motivate the patient to rehabilitate them. When TW came in for PT, he was down on himself because he had
The medical field is expanding ever so rapidly in today’s society. In the field of Physical Therapy one needs to have the understanding of how the human body works and the injuries one body could sustain. I have chosen a career to help others to battle back from life-changing injuries or surgeries. I will take the first step of joining the medical field by obtaining a physical therapist associates degree. I will become a Physical Therapist Assistant.
This is a nearly 40-minute interview. The object of this interview is the leader of a community medical centre. This medical centre has five physicians, two nutritionists, one occupational therapist, a nurse and three service desk receptionists. This medical centre serves the community of more than five thousand patients now. After the interview, integration of the following eight items in this leader’s characteristics and traits.
Physical therapists play an integral role in health care. The vision statement for the physical therapy career is: “Transforming society by optimizing movement to improve the human experience”. 1 Through my prior volunteer and work experiences, I discovered that physical therapy was the perfect career choice and vision for my future. As a current student and future physical therapist, I will play an important role for society and within the health care profession. The vision statement will serve as my reminder to always strive for more knowledge and feedback as a student, uphold pertinent values that will improve the practice of physical therapy, and to always provide quality care to all patients.
The internship that I acquired during the summer of 2010 at the Greenwood Sports and Industrial Rehabilitation Center (GSIRC), allowed me to gain an immeasurable amount of experience during my tenure at this facility. Within this period, the exposure to new concepts within the physical therapy industry allowed me to observe and work hands on with patients of all ages and disabilities that exposed me to various treatment plans and programs to restore client’s mobility. The essential Physical Education and Exercise Science (PEES) courses taken at Lander University were beneficial to my academic knowledgebase, which prepared me and developed me for the opportunity within the physical therapy discipline. Working as an intern taught me the responsibility of time management and working within a lean schedule that allow me to further develop my skill set. This reflection paper will illustrate my classroom experience, internship experience, and learning experience.
Physical therapists are health care professionals that provide therapeutic services to their patients who have temporary or chronic physical conditions that were caused from injury or disease. Physical therapist also provided therapeutic services to patients after they have gone through surgery to help them gain back mobility and manage their pain. They can also work in preventive care by promoting healthy life styles and instructing individual patients or groups on preventing injury by using exercises that stretch and strengthen muscles. To help their patients try to recover they use massage techniques, wellness plans, and different types of equipment. When a physical therapist sees a patient for the very first time they must do an examination, evaluation, diagnosis, and then put together a physical intervention to start the rehabilitation process. They also work as a team with other health care professionals to help with their patients needs. Physical therapist can really make a difference in their patient’s lives by not only providing therapeutic services but also encouraging and motivating them so they can get better. The main goals of physical therapist are to help their patients retain or gain back lost physical mobility, eliminate or reduce pain, increase productivity and help promote a healthy life style so patients can have a better quality of life and become more independent.
Overall, the speaker we had for the physical therapy lecture was insightful. One of the main things he stated was that their are jobs and opportunities everywhere. The career is growing each year, and is in high demand. It was also great to know that your future career has the highest percent of job satisfaction.