Where Can Physical Therapists Be Found?

Where can a physical therapist be found? 

Everyone of all ages will require physical therapy at some point in their life. You can find physical therapy in the NICU, general hospitals, at nursing homes, at schools, in out-patient offices, home health settings, and they are an integral part of in-patient rehabilitation centers as well. Private practice physical therapy offices are considered out-patient, and they are easily found around the world. Out-patient offices can be very specific in what they treat, such as only pelvic health, or they can be more broad and encompass all orthopedic diagnoses. These would be neck, back or joint pain, rehab following surgery, sciatica, or strains/sprains.

Out-physical therapy would be your usual go-to when requiring help with an injury or an issue, even with a fractured bone, or plantar fasciitis. Out-patient physical therapists can also cover more specific neurological and complex diagnoses such as Parkinson's disease, traumatic brain injury (TBI), concussion recovery, spinal cord injury (SCI), amputee rehabilitation, or post-COVID rehabilitation as examples. Some of these more complex and involved cases will experience everything from physical therapy in the acute setting (hospital), to in-patient or home health, to out-patient physical therapy. 

Within out-patient physical therapy you will find the most variation in how therapists treat. Depending on state rules, some may specialize in dry needling, or cupping, or have extensive knowledge and experience in hands-on (manual) soft tissue work. Others will be more experienced in treating dizziness, vertigo, coordination, pelvic floor, or guiding the patient through exercises for pain relief. Also within all settings physical therapists will work closely with the following professions - occupational and speech therapy, which work on more fine motor skills and language/speech/memory.