Job: Physical therapist at Rockdale Medical Center Outpatient Rehabilitation and Therapy Services in Conyers.
What I do: "I work one-on-one with people to help relieve their pain and restore their functional mobility by increasing strength, range of motion, flexibility, coordination and balance. I help treat people with a wide variety of diagnoses, including ankle sprain, low-back pain, joint replacement, spinal cord injury, stroke, brain injury and multiple sclerosis."
How I got into this: "I was first introduced to physical therapy at the age of 16, after I tore a ligament in my knee while doing gymnastics. I thought the whole idea of PT was so interesting — from the electrical stimulation used to strengthen my quadriceps to the exercises created to retrain my proprioceptive awareness and balance. I knew right away that this was what I wanted to do — get people back to doing what they love."
Best part of the job: "Physical therapist has repeatedly been ranked among the top 10 jobs in the United States, most likely because it is so rewarding. There are times when I get to see patients progress from being wheelchair-bound and depending on their family members for nearly all aspects of their daily care [dressing, toileting, bathing, etc.] to eventually being able to walk on their own and return to full independence."
Most challenging part: "Getting patients to understand that when they walk out the clinic door their work is not yet over. I give every patient a home exercise program, which sometimes needs to be done as many as three times a day. I understand that most people have jobs and have extremely busy lives, but if they want to see maximum results, they need to be diligent with their home programs."
What people don't know about my job: "Contrary to popular belief, PT does not stand for 'pain and torture.' I actually do not enjoy seeing people in pain. My intent is to relieve pain, not cause it. Unfortunately, there are times when some pain is unavoidable, and when that is the case I try to keep it to an absolute minimum."
What keeps me going: "I am fortunate enough to have found a job that I absolutely love. I get to work with a great team of people who have become almost like an extended family, as well as getting to work with some truly amazing patients. When you treat a patient two to three days a week for three or even four months, you tend to build strong and meaningful relationships with them. Many times these patients will come back months or even years later just to say 'hi' and catch up. I believe that it is these relationships that keep me going every day."
Preparation needed: "In order to become a licensed physical therapist, you need a master's or three-year doctoral degree in physical therapy. It is the American Physical Therapy Association's vision that by the year 2020, physical therapy will be provided by PTs who are doctors of physical therapy. In addition to a degree in physical therapy, there are requirements for continuing education courses which vary by state in order to maintain your licensure."
Salary: The median salary for physical therapists in metro Atlanta is $75,157, according to salary.com.
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Compiled by John Brieske, Pulse managing editor. Got a health care job that you love? Please send email to jbrieske@ajc.com.
