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Summary Job Description | Tasks | |||
Assist physical therapists in providing physical therapy treatments and procedures. May, in accordance with State laws, assist in the development of treatment plans, carry out routine functions, document the progress of treatment, and modify specific treatments in accordance with patient status and within the scope of treatment plans established by a physical therapist. Generally requires formal training. | Instruct, motivate, safeguard and assist patients as they practice exercises and functional activities. | |||
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Confer with physical therapy staff or others to discuss and evaluate patient information for planning, modifying, and coordinating treatment. | ||||
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Measure patients' range-of-joint motion, body parts, and vital signs to determine effects of treatments or for patient evaluations. | ||||
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Secure patients into or onto therapy equipment. | ||||
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Fit patients for orthopedic braces, prostheses, and supportive devices, such as crutches. | ||||
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Train patients in the use of orthopedic braces, prostheses, or supportive devices. | ||||
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Transport patients to and from treatment areas, lifting and transferring them according to positioning requirements. | ||||
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Monitor operation of equipment and record use of equipment and administration of treatment. | ||||
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Clean work area and check and store equipment after treatment. | ||||
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Assist patients to dress, undress, or put on and remove supportive devices, such as braces, splints, and slings. | ||||
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Administer traction to relieve neck and back pain, using intermittent and static traction equipment. | ||||
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Perform clerical duties, such as taking inventory, ordering supplies, answering telephone, taking messages, and filling out forms. | ||||
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Prepare treatment areas and electrotherapy equipment for use by physiotherapists. | ||||
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Perform postural drainage, percussions and vibrations, and teach deep breathing exercises to treat respiratory conditions. | ||||
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Observe patients during treatments to compile and evaluate data on their responses and progress, and provide results to physical therapist in person or through progress notes. | ||||
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Administer active and passive manual therapeutic exercises, therapeutic massage, aquatic physical therapy, and heat, light, sound, and electrical modality treatments, such as ultrasound. | ||||
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Communicate with or instruct caregivers and family members on patient therapeutic activities and treatment plans. | ||||
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Attend or conduct continuing education courses, seminars, or in-service activities. | ||||
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CompGeo Salary Survey Benchmark Job Summary and Competencies
Physical Therapist Assistants
The Benchmark Job Description below represents the specific Position Characteristics of the job used in the Salary Survey. Benchmark Job Descriptions should be inspected carefully to review the degree of matching between an organizations' Job and the Salary Survey Benchmark. Matching internal Jobs to Salary Survey Benchmark Jobs should not be done on Job Title alone. A thorough comparison of Salary Survey Benchmark to Internal Job Descriptions is recommended. A good overlap should exist on any comparisons used on critical Job Dimensions and Competencies.- Job Description
- Knowledges
- Skills
- Abilites
- Tools and Technology
- Education and Experience
- Alternate Job Titles
- Salaries
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Important Knowledge Competencies | Competency Description | |||
Customer and Personal Service | Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction. | |||
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Therapy and Counseling | Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance. | |||
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Medicine and Dentistry | Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures. | |||
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Psychology | Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders. | |||
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Education and Training | Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects. | |||
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English Language | Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar. | |||
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Biology | Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment. | |||
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Public Safety and Security | Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions. | |||
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Administration and Management | Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources. | |||
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Physics | Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub- atomic structures and processes. | |||
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Important Skill Competencies | Competency Description | |||
Speaking | Talking to others to convey information effectively. | |||
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Active Listening | Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times. | |||
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Social Perceptiveness | Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do. | |||
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Monitoring | Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action. | |||
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Reading Comprehension | Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents. | |||
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Writing | Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience. | |||
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Critical Thinking | Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems. | |||
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Coordination | Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions. | |||
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Instructing | Teaching others how to do something. | |||
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Service Orientation | Actively looking for ways to help people. | |||
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Active Learning | Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making. | |||
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Learning Strategies | Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things. | |||
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Judgment and Decision Making | Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one. | |||
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Persuasion | Persuading others to change their minds or behavior. | |||
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Complex Problem Solving | Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions. | |||
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Systems Analysis | Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes. | |||
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Time Management | Managing one's own time and the time of others. | |||
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Operation Monitoring | Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly. | |||
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Important Ability Competencies | Competency Description | |||
Oral Comprehension | The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. | |||
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Oral Expression | The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. | |||
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Speech Clarity | The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you. | |||
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Speech Recognition | The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person. | |||
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Written Comprehension | The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. | |||
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Problem Sensitivity | The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem. | |||
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Near Vision | The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer). | |||
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Written Expression | The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand. | |||
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Deductive Reasoning | The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense. | |||
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Information Ordering | The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations). | |||
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Category Flexibility | The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways. | |||
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Inductive Reasoning | The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events). | |||
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Visualization | The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged. | |||
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Arm-Hand Steadiness | The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position. | |||
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Fluency of Ideas | The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity). | |||
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Flexibility of Closure | The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material. | |||
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Selective Attention | The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted. | |||
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Finger Dexterity | The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects. | |||
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Static Strength | The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects. | |||
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Originality | The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem. | |||
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Perceptual Speed | The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object. | |||
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Manual Dexterity | The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects. | |||
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Trunk Strength | The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without 'giving out' or fatiguing. | |||
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Extent Flexibility | The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs. | |||
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Far Vision | The ability to see details at a distance. | |||
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Time Sharing | The ability to shift back and forth between two or more activities or sources of information (such as speech, sounds, touch, or other sources). | |||
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Multilimb Coordination | The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion. | |||
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Tools/Technology Example | Product Category | |||
Accounting software | Accounting software | |||
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Arena Health Systems Phys-X | Medical software | |||
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Beaver Creek Software The THERAPIST | Medical software | |||
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Billing software | Accounting software | |||
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BioEx Systems Exercise Pro | Medical software | |||
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Bookkeeping software | Accounting software | |||
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Client caseload management software | Medical software | |||
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Eazy Application Systems QuickEMR | Medical software | |||
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Email software | Electronic mail software | |||
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FileMaker Pro software | Data base user interface and query software | |||
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Knees Software PT DocTools | Medical software | |||
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Laboratory information system LIS software | Medical software | |||
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Microsoft Access | Data base user interface and query software | |||
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Microsoft Excel | Spreadsheet software | |||
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Microsoft Office software | Office suite software | |||
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Microsoft Outlook | Electronic mail software | |||
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PhysioGraphic | Medical software | |||
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PhysioTools Tools RG | Medical software | |||
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Rehab Documentation Company ReDoc Suite | Medical software | |||
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Scheduling software | Calendar and scheduling software | |||
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SpectraSoft AppointmentsPRO | Calendar and scheduling software | |||
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SpectraSoft DocuPRO | Medical software | |||
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Spreadsheet software | Spreadsheet software | |||
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Summit Software CarePoint | Medical software | |||
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TherAssist | Medical software | |||
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Video game software | Action games | |||
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Virtual reality game software | Action games | |||
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Word processing software | Word processing software | |||
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dBase | Data base user interface and query software | |||
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Above-the-knee prosthetics | Lower extremity prosthetic devices | |||
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Ankle-foot orthotics | Orthotics or foot care products | |||
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Arm prosthetics | Upper extremity prosthetic devices | |||
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Automated external defibrillators AED | Automated external defibrillators AED or hard paddles | |||
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Back braces | Back or lumbar or sacral orthopedic softgoods | |||
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Balance beams | Balance beams or boards or bolsters or rockers for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Balance boards | Balance beams or boards or bolsters or rockers for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Below-the-knee prosthetics | Lower extremity prosthetic devices | |||
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Blood pressure cuffs | Blood pressure cuff kits | |||
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Body-fat calipers | Skinfold calipers | |||
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Cardiac monitors | Cardiac output CO monitoring units or accessories | |||
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Cervical traction equipment | Head or neck traction supplies | |||
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Cold packs | Therapeutic heating or cooling pads or compresses or packs | |||
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Continuous passive motion CPM equipment | Continuous passive motion CPM devices or accessories | |||
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Crutches | Crutches or crutch accessories | |||
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Desktop computers | Desktop computers | |||
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Digital cameras | Digital cameras | |||
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Digital video cameras | Digital camcorders or video cameras | |||
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Electromyography EMG biofeedback equipment | Electromyography EMG units or accessories | |||
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Ergometers | Work tables or stations or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Exercise trampolines | Exercise trampolines | |||
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Free weights | Weights or sets or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Front-wheel walkers | Walkers or rollators | |||
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Functional electrical stimulation FES equipment | Neuromuscular stimulators or kits | |||
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Gait belts | Gait belts for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Goniometers | Goniometers | |||
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Hand grips | Wrist exercisers for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Hemi walkers | Walkers or rollators | |||
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Hi-lo manipulation tables | Mats or platforms for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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High-voltage Galvanic stimulation machines | Galvanic or faradic stimulators | |||
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Hoyer lifts | Patient lifts or accessories | |||
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Hydrotherapy pools | Full body immersion hydrotherapy baths or tanks | |||
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Inclinometers | Physiological recorders | |||
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Interferential electrical stimulation machines | Electrotherapy combination units | |||
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Intermittent compression units | Vascular sequential compression devices or tubing | |||
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Iontopheresis equipment | Electrotherapy combination units | |||
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Knee braces | Knee braces or hinged knee supports | |||
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Lavage hydrotherapy equipment | Hydrotherapy bath or tank accessories | |||
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Lower-body isokinetic machines | Lower body resistance machines | |||
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Massage equipment | Electric vibrators for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Mechanical percussors | Chest percussors | |||
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Mechanical stethoscopes | Mechanical stethoscopes or accessories | |||
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Medical nasal cannulae | Medical nasal cannulae | |||
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Medicine balls | Therapeutic balls or accessories | |||
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Notebook computers | Notebook computers | |||
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Paraffin baths | Therapeutic paraffin baths or accessories | |||
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Parallel bars | Parallel bars for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Patient positioning devices | Positioning devices | |||
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Pelvic traction equipment | Pelvis or back traction supplies | |||
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Personal computers | Personal computers | |||
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Pick-up walkers | Walkers or rollators | |||
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Platform walkers | Walkers or rollators | |||
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Plumb lines | Plumb bobs | |||
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Portable oxygen equipment | Oxygen therapy delivery system products accessories or its supplies | |||
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Posture grids | Patient height rulers | |||
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Powder boards | Powder boards for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Protective gowns | Medical staff isolation or cover gowns | |||
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Pulse oximeters | Pulse oximeter units | |||
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Quad canes | Canes or cane accessories | |||
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Reachers | Reachers for the physically challenged | |||
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Reciprocating walkers | Walkers or rollators | |||
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Reflex hammers | Reflex hammers or mallets | |||
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Roto beds | Patient care beds or accessories for specialty care | |||
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Sacro-illiac joint lumbar corsets | Back or lumbar or sacral orthopedic softgoods | |||
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Safety gloves | Protective gloves | |||
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Safety goggles | Goggles | |||
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Sequential compression devices | Vascular sequential compression devices or tubing | |||
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Short wave diathermy devices | Short wave diathermy units | |||
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Single point canes | Canes or cane accessories | |||
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Sliding boards | Patient shifting boards or accessories | |||
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Slings | Arm orthopedic softgoods | |||
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Splints | Orthopedic splint systems | |||
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Standing cages | Patient care beds or accessories for specialty care | |||
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Standing tables | Patient care beds or accessories for specialty care | |||
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Stationary bicycles | Pedal exercisers for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Stretchers | Patient stretchers or stretcher accessories | |||
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Surgical masks | Medical staff isolation or surgical masks | |||
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Swiss exercise balls | Therapeutic balls or accessories | |||
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Tablet computers | Tablet computers | |||
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Therabands | Resistive exercise bands or putty or tubing or accessories for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Therapeutic hot packs | Therapeutic heating or cooling pads or compresses or packs | |||
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Tilt tables | Patient care beds or accessories for specialty care | |||
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Total lift chairs | Patient lifts or accessories | |||
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Transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation TENS equipment | Transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation units | |||
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Treadmills | Treadmill exercisers for rehabilitation or therapy | |||
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Ultrasound machines | Ultrasonic therapy apparatus or supplies | |||
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Ultraviolet UV phototherapy lamps | Ultraviolet UV lamps | |||
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Upper-body isokinetic machines | Upper body resistance machines | |||
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Wheelchairs | Wheelchairs | |||
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Whirlpool therapy baths | Full body immersion hydrotherapy baths or tanks | |||
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Wrist splints | Orthopedic splint systems | |||
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Prerequisite Qualification Category | Education and Experience Level | |||
Required Level of Education | Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) | |||
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On-the-Job Training | Anything beyond short demonstration, up to and including 1 month | |||
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Related Work Experience | None | |||
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On-Site or In-Plant Training | Up to and including 1 month | |||
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Alternate Job Title(s) | |||
Licensed Physical Therapist Assistant (LPTA) | |||
Licensed Physical Therapy Assistant (LPTA) | |||
Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA) | |||
Physical Therapy Assistant (PTA) | |||
Physical Therapy Technician | |||
Physiotherapy Assistant | |||
Rehabilitation Aide | |||
Rehabilitation Assistant | |||
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