What does a Travel Physical Therapist do?

A travel physical therapist provides physical therapy services on a traveling basis, moving between hospitals, physical therapy clinics, and other facilities. People who are willing to travel usually make more money and may have access to other benefits, such as better vacation scheduling. The length of time at any given job can range from weeks to months, depending on the contract, and people may be able to put in requests to travel in specific regions if they want to stick to a particular geographic area.

The travel physical therapist works through a placement agency. Such agencies provide personnel in regions where facilities may not be able to recruit providers from within the community, and also offer coverage for people going on vacation or leave. People who work for an agency need to submit evidence of certifications to practice so the agency can make sure they are qualified, and they also usually need letters of reference, as well as school transcripts. The agency will make a placement depending on the parameters established by the therapist and the needs of the facility.

Travel physical therapists can work in hospitals, nursing homes, and outpatient rehabilitation facilities. They may specialize in a particular area of physical therapy, such as working with children or burn victims. In a community where a full-time specialist would not have enough work, a travel physical therapist can provide services that would otherwise be inaccessible. The therapist may rotate through positions at regional facilities to provide coverage, for example.

The agency usually does not provide accommodations or transportation. These are the responsibility of the travel physical therapist. The facility must provide adequate equipment and supplies, including tables, weight training equipment, and diagnostic tools. In some agencies, an informal network between care providers can often help people find apartment shares and temporary housing in the communities they work in, with exiting personnel reassigning leases or rentals to incoming people.

This work can expose people to a variety of working conditions and people. One advantage to being a travel physical therapist is constant variation on the job as the therapist adjusts to new facilities and meets new patients. Physical therapists may find it disappointing to be unable to follow through on all their cases, however; they may need to leave before a patient's course of therapy is done, and thus don't have an opportunity to assess the effectiveness of the therapy. Some people also find the constant movement stressful and may have trouble making friends and professional connections.