If you’re a newly-minted PT just out of school, or even a more seasoned veteran, and you’re looking for a job, you might be a little unsure about what to look for and what you should ask about in an interview.
To help you out, the American Physical Therapy Association has come up with a series of questions that you will want to get answers to when looking at a new job opportunity. They cover four areas: financial, professional development, ethical and legal concerns, and quality of care.
In the financial area, if the opportunity is in a private practice setting, you will want to find out how the facility you are looking at is run, and what opportunities there are to acquire an equity stake in the practice or even ownership. And, of course, you will want to find out about the pay and benefits package.
In the professional development area, you will want to get a sense of how important professional development is at the facility. Is there a mentoring program? What opportunities are there to grow the current programs and services?
In the area of ethical and legal issues, you will want to find out what the business practices are at the facility. You also should find out if the PTs supervise the clinical decisions that relate to physical therapy. And you’ll also want to know how the facility uses support staff, such as PT assistants and aides.
Finally, in the area of quality of care, you will want to find out what your responsibilities will be at the facility. Another important issue is to discover how much of a voice the PTs have in developing policy and managing issues related to quality of care, continuity of care and patient-staff ratios.
How does the facility put into practice the core values of physical therapy €” accountability, altruism, compassion, excellence, integrity, professional duty, and social responsibility? How do they incorporate the integration of care and collaboration among different health professionals in delivering care?
To really get a good idea of the workplace environment, you should get information in all of these areas.
If you’re interested in working as a physical therapist, contact Centra Healthcare Solutions. We have many great permanent and travel therapist assignments at rehab facilities and hospitals all across the country. We look forward to hearing from you!