You know that you want to work as a physical therapist, but what next? You should also think about the different types of physical therapy jobs that are out there. For example, do you want to work with kids or with older patients? Is there a specific injury or illness you’d like to help people heal from? Luckily, there are a variety of different types of physical therapy jobs out there, and here are seven that are available right now!
Seven Types of Physical Therapy Jobs Available Now
1. Pediatric
Pediatric physical therapists have the important task of working with children. Most commonly, they are treating children who are diagnosed with disease or disorders that impact their motor skills. This can include diagnoses such as cerebral palsy, autism, down syndrome, or brain injuries, to name a few. Aside from healthcare facilities, if you are a pediatric physical therapist, you could find yourself working with children directly in their schools or even visiting them at home.
2. Geriatric
On the opposite end of the spectrum from children is caring for geriatric patients. Older patients can be harder because they’re already set in their ways and not as open to changing how they do things. However, this is a rewarding job because you can also return motion for them that they assumed was lost forever. This is another one of the types of physical therapy where you might work outside of a healthcare facility, visiting the patient in their home.
3. Orthopedic
Orthopedic physical therapy jobs focus specifically on patients who need to rebuild muscle strength or motion after surgery. Most times these patients injured themselves, need surgery, and now need to help to re-establish strength and motion. In this type of physical therapy position, you could work with patients of any age group.
4. Cardiovascular and Pulmonary
This is one of the rarer types of physical therapy. Physical therapists who focus on cardiovascular or pulmonary health help patients who have heart or blood circulation issues. The goal in this type of therapy is to work key muscles to help the patient’s blood flow better and therefore heart functions improve. Just like with an orthopedic focus, you could work with patients in a wide age range.
5. Vestibular rehabilitation
This is a newer focus in physical therapy. Essentially, physical therapists in this realm focus on helping people who are dizzy from inner ear issues. For example, someone who suffers from vertigo experiences a sudden onset of dizziness. They could use vestibular rehabilitation to strengthen their muscles and learn balance skills to cope with that dizziness.
6. Neurological physical therapy
Just like it sounds, neurological physical therapy will put you in the position to work with patients who have severe brain injuries or spinal injuries.
7. Women’s health
Another unique type of physical therapy is to work with women’s health. This involves helping women who are experiencing pelvic pain or issues with urinary incontinence.
Permanent vs Travel Types of Physical Therapy Jobs
One thing that all of these types of physical therapy jobs have in common is that you can choose a permanent position, or you can choose to travel. When you travel, you go somewhere to work for 13 weeks, and then you go somewhere else. This gives therapists the opportunity to work with different groups of people, learning about unique areas of the country, and building professional connections. It takes a unique type of person to be a travel therapist because you have to be flexible, adventurous, and good at connecting with new people.
Do you have what it takes to work as a travel therapist? Apply to the different types of physical therapy jobs that are available right now!
