Direct Restrictions In Physical Therapy
In the 2002 APTA Presidential Address, Mr. Massey made the point that direct access was not a new issue in physical therapy (Massey, 2002). In fact, by 2002 “the battle” for direct access had already been going on for two decades (Massey, 2002). It was a battle that was fought state by state. Three decades later, the US Virgin Islands, the District of Columbia, and all 50 states allow direct access of physical therapy services as of January 1, 2015 (Direct Access at the State Level, 2015). Direct access removed state laws requiring referral or prescription from a physician for patients to access physical therapy services from licensed physical therapists. For example, if an individual were to sprain their ankle while playing recreational
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These restrictions are a concern within the physical therapy profession. Common limitations are number of visits, time per visit, restrictions on patient populations that have direct access, and requirements of previous diagnoses. Treatments available without physician referral are currently limited and physical referral is still mandated for certain treatments (Direct Access at the State Level, 2015). However, Montana law states there are no such restrictions and a licensed physical therapist can evaluate and treat an individual as long as they do not go beyond their scope of practice and limitation of training and education (A Summary of Direct Access Language, …show more content…
Merriam-Webster defines profession as “a type of job that requires special education, training, or skill” (http://www.m-w.com). It seems what direct access provides physical therapy is true autonomy, and through autonomy comes a putative recognition by both the general public and other healthcare professions of physical therapy’s specialized body of knowledge and an implicit trust that physical therapists have the training to be able to recognize when a condition falls outside that body of knowledge. Thus, direct access is the vehicle through which physical therapy establishes itself as a profession in our healthcare
These restrictions are a concern within the physical therapy profession. Common limitations are number of visits, time per visit, restrictions on patient populations that have direct access, and requirements of previous diagnoses. Treatments available without physician referral are currently limited and physical referral is still mandated for certain treatments (Direct Access at the State Level, 2015). However, Montana law states there are no such restrictions and a licensed physical therapist can evaluate and treat an individual as long as they do not go beyond their scope of practice and limitation of training and education (A Summary of Direct Access Language, …show more content…
Merriam-Webster defines profession as “a type of job that requires special education, training, or skill” (http://www.m-w.com). It seems what direct access provides physical therapy is true autonomy, and through autonomy comes a putative recognition by both the general public and other healthcare professions of physical therapy’s specialized body of knowledge and an implicit trust that physical therapists have the training to be able to recognize when a condition falls outside that body of knowledge. Thus, direct access is the vehicle through which physical therapy establishes itself as a profession in our healthcare