Ron Said:

Im almost done with physical therapy school and want to expand my scope of practice with acupuncture.?

We Answered:

As a PT, it will not enhance your salary much. It would be rare to find an insurance company that would pay for you to do this treatment. Since most PTs earn their salary in a setting where their clientel has insurance, it is not much of an asset to the facility.

Furthermore, not many hospitals will cover your malpractice to do this.

Yet, if you did this as a "side job" and had clients who pay out of pocket, you could earn some extra cash. Yet, you would need to purchase a private malpractice policy (which isn't much for PTs) since your facility coverage will not cover you outside the facility.

Since the focus in PT is so heavily evidence based, there isn't a whole lot of room in the scope of practice for acupuncture. If I were hiring someone who had a certification in accupuncture, I wouldn't even consider it an asset to my facility because I know our payer mix doesn't cover it.

If you really want to expand your practice an increase your income, seek out board speciality certification such as NCS, OCS, etc. Or consider post graduate certifications such as MDT or in lymphedema managementm or women's health. These are things that clinics need and will pay for.

Good luck.

Shawn Said:

My doctor suspected me to have a myeoloma a certain kind of bone cancer. Still undergoing my physical therapy?

We Answered:

First of all, myeloma is not a bone cancer it is a cancer of the plasma cells, which are formed in the bone marrow.
Second, it is very unusual to do a bone marrow biopsy from the chest.
Third, who do you want to sue and why? It is no one’s fault you have cancer.

Elsie Said:

is it better to get a master in physical therapy or a doctorate?

We Answered:

The DPT is the wave of the future. It is almost impossible to find a MPT program. There are only 13 left in the country and they are all in the process of converting to the DPT. This is a mandate from the professional PT organization ==the APTA. The doctorate is only about 1 semester longer than the masters program. Clinicals are longer and the class work a little more indepth but the curriculm is the same. You take the same exam. DPT grads tend to be ready to start as soon as they graduate. MPT students need a little more guidance when they start in my experience. I think that extra clinical time is key. I have a BS in PT (with 14 years under my belt )when I went back for the DPT. Diagnostics and differential diagnosis is key for direct access.

www.apta.org go under education then student resources and you find a lot of info

Ronald Said:

I slipped and fell broke my ankle in a restaront parkinglot are they liable?

We Answered:

Depends on what happened.

In order to recover from the restaurant, you have to prove they were negligent and that negligence is the cause of your injury.

Just because you were in their parking lot when you fell does not mean you get a big pay day.

Did you notify the restaurant manager after you fell?

Shane Said:

Question about physical therapy as a career?

We Answered:

$75,000 is a very average salary...but this includes PTs who've been in practice for awhile.

Many people feel that being a PT has a low salary for how much education it requires (6-7) at least. Yet, this salary is well above the national average salary (which is about $40,000). You can live comfortably, but likely not extravagantly. As a new graduate, you are likely to earn somewhere in the $55-60,000 range. It will also depend on where you live. Living in a metro area, you tend to get the more average salaries, but cost of living is high. In rural areas, one tends to get paid a lot more, and cost of living is very low. Many PTs make well above $75,000...especially those who own a successful practice or work for an agency (not recommended for new graduates).

PT school is very competitive, but the whole analogy to med school is way off. Getting into med school is still very, very challenging from both an academic and competition stand point. PT school is competitive (but not competitive as med school) and the types of prerequisite coursework required are not nearly as challenging as those required for PT school. If you can pull off mostly solid A's and a handful of Bs in college in general science courses, you will be a good candidate.

Billy Said:

Between Speech therapy, physical therapy and occupational which is the best ?

We Answered:

It really depends on your interests...speech and cognition and knowledge of swallowing go hand in hand with speech.

Teaching people how to manage their normal daily self care routine, fine motor coordination, teaching people with low vision how to function, managing hand related disorders are realted to occupational therapy.

Walking, balance, manual therapy for neck and back pain, returning to a normal function...all related to PT.

All have similar advancement opportunities...ie, becoming a department manager, etc...and all are in demand.

Go with your gut.