Ever wonder the educational background of your Physical Therapist? Physical Therapy is a growing, competitive field, and one that requires an extensive amount of education. Let’s explore what a physical therapist is, the level of schooling required, and what all those abbreviations may mean!
In today’s healthcare landscape, physical therapists are required to have a Doctorate degree. All graduating physical therapists must complete not only an undergraduate Bachelor’s degree, but must also have completed a Doctorate level degree in Physical Therapy. This includes rigorous two-three year post undergraduate coursework, for a total of six-seven years depending on the program. In addition, candidates must complete clinical internships working with real patients in a variety of settings, including, but not limited to pediatrics, neurological units, hospital settings, and outpatient settings such as Achieve Physical Therapy. Once completed, each candidate must sit for a licensure exam, similar to other fields such as a BAR exam for a lawyer. The testing is typically around five hours and covers all topics in the physical therapy field.
The exception to Doctors of Physical Therapy (DPT) are those experienced physical therapists who graduated prior to the educational change. Therefore, depending on the setting a physical therapist could have either a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree. As of 2015, the minimum educational requirement is a Doctorate’s degree. Bachelor’s degrees in Physical Therapy were phased out earlier at varying times, but generally early 2000s and before.
So why a Doctorate?
Physical Therapy shifted toward requiring Doctorates degrees for one main reason, Direct Access. This allows all patients suffering from pain and other conditions to seek physical therapy evaluations and consults without the need for a doctor referral. This is the case in all 50 states, and helps to reduce the amount of time and hurdles a patient in pain needs to jump through in order to get the care they need. Another huge advantage is that it is more cost effective. The American Physical Therapy Association found that “the total paid claims for physician referral episodes was 2.2 times higher than direct access episodes”(APTA 2018). Think back to the last physician visit you had, which may have involved imaging or a discussion with your MD. Seeing a physical therapist first could help in the event an MD visit would lead to a referral for PT anyways. The exception to this rule occurs with certain health insurance companies requiring a physician referral prior to the start of PT. This “referral” is typically a faxed authorization from the doctor which can be requested by either you or your desired physical therapy provider. In other words, you do not actually need to be seen by a doctor.
No matter the starting point, physical therapists work closely with all referring physicians. Behind the scenes, your physical therapist is often calling MDs for collaboration on treatment, seeking guidance based on individual surgical guidelines, and providing frequent updates on progress, status, and continued limitations. This multidisciplinary approach and team effort helps ensure the best outcome for you, the patient!
What do all those letters mean?
Let’s break down some of the common abbreviations for physical therapists:
- PT– This simply means physical therapist, and is likely to be found of the business card of most practitioners
- DPT-This signals that the therapist has completed a Doctorate program for PT
- MSPT– This signals that therapist has completed a Master’s program for PT
- AT– This signals that your physical therapist has a background certification in Athletic Training, which can include working on the field to help injured athletes during competition
- CSCS– This signals that the physical therapist is also a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, which allows them to assist the athlete in improved performance and allows them to play a larger health and fitness role
Resources:
Mitchell, 2018 http://www.apta.org/StateIssues/DirectAccess/
If you have any questions about this post or would like to speak with a physical therapist about an injury, give us a call at (978) 263-0007. We would be happy to answer any questions and discuss possible next steps.
Achieve Physical Therapy is currently open in Acton, Bedford, and Sudbury MA. We can see you in the office or by video treatment. If you choose to come into the office, we are following all CDC guidelines including the use of face coverings, cleaning, personal hygiene, and staggering patient appointments to limit how many people are in the office.
