PT practice

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mattador

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Hey guys I wanted to start out by saying I am not actually a therapist but am looking to learn more about the industry. I was interested in getting in PT as a field but couldnt handle the grad school and cadaver dissection. I understand some of the difficulties having been through therapy myself twice and really appreciate the work you do.

I am software wanted to see if I could create something to help make PTs lives less stressful and lead to more income and success for you guys. Would you guys mind answering a few questions? Thanks

1) What is the most important part of your business?
2) What is the most frustrating part of your job or business?
3) If you could wave a wand and make anything in your job/business magically do itself what would it be?

Thanks guys. I can't promise anything but would really love to hear your feedback and would love to follow up with some of you in a phone interview to help solve your annoying issues.

Thanks for your time.

Cheers,

Matt

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1. Customer Service, Positive Patient Outcomes
2. Reimbursement, Limited Autonomy
3. Documentation
 
how do you maintain or maximize customer service? positive patient outcomes in terms of rehab effectiveness?

reimbursement from patient or insurance company? what problems do you have with this? what do you mean by limited autonomy?

how much documentation is required per patient? how long does it take and what do you do?
 
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how do you maintain or maximize customer service? Timeliness with appointments. Appropriate therapeutic intervention. Achieving PT and patient's goals. Accessibility to the patient following services.

positive patient outcomes in terms of rehab effectiveness? Yes (improved function)
reimbursement from patient or insurance company? Insurance usually

what problems do you have with this? Retroactive billing (take money from you once it's been paid), Denial of pay. This relies heavily on strong documentation to justify your billing

what do you mean by limited autonomy? PTs are not fully independent. We have some independence, but often require many other signatures to approve our work
how much documentation is required per patient? how long does it take and what do you do?Depends on the patient. Evaluations require more words. Treatments require less. Complex patients can require more. If you want to think of it in terms of pages I'd say 1-4 pages per patient. TYPE TYPE TYPE
 
how long does your avg appt take? what do you receive in compensation for that?

what level do you seek to achieve with patient performance? is there a certain threshold that is difference b/t success and failure?

I have heard insurance companies are a total pain. They can legally do that? What is the justification for retroactively taking money back or not paying? How often does this happen? what do PT practices do to prevent this?

Do you mean how patients need approvals and referral from Dr to get physical therapy? What other signatures are required?

So there is a lot of patient paperwork. how long(timewise) does a typical eval vs appt last in paperwork? When do you fill this out
 
how long does your avg appt take? 30-60 min
what do you receive in compensation for that? employee receives $30-50/hr. Employer will bill on average about $100

what level do you seek to achieve with patient performance? Depends on the patient. Some patients get hurt tripping over a rug and just need to return to a desk job. Others get hurt wrestling an inmate to the ground at a federal prison, and need to return to a much higher level of performance. Some are athletes professional or amateur. It varies.

is there a certain threshold that is difference b/t success and failure? PTs write goals into their plans. Our hope is that they are reached, but this isn't always reality. Identifying what the functional needs of the patient are is paramount. Meet those needs and you are successful. Some patients start out as good candidates for therapy, but are not compliant with an exercise program. Despite having a PT-relevant injury, they may not improve (i.e. failure) if they don't do the work.

I have heard insurance companies are a total pain. They can legally do that? What is the justification for retroactively taking money back or not paying? This is above my head. Best to get an answer from an insurer.

How often does this happen? Varies by region, state and/or caseload volume. Could be once a month could be 5 times a week. Proper documentation is needed to justify your billing. what do PT practices do to prevent this? Resubmit/strengthen documentation if allowed.

Do you mean how patients need approvals and referral from Dr to get physical therapy?
What other signatures are required? A PT can treat many injuries without the patient ever seeing a physician. When it is necessary we need signatures from the physician to approve our intended course of treatment, and approval from the patient's insurer to continue services (unless the patient wants to pay out of pocket).

So there is a lot of patient paperwork. how long(timewise) does a typical eval vs appt last in paperwork? In an outpatient setting I'll have 80% of my evaluation paperwork complete before the patient walks out of the door. I'll need 10-15 minutes more to finishing things up. A treatment note I'll finish before the patient leaves or a few minutes afterward. When do you fill this out Immediately. However if my next patient has arrived I'll hold the note until I have an opening. That may be in an hour or at the end of the day when the clinic is closed. Many PTs document at the end of the day. This is ~8 hours of paid work (patient interaction) and an extra hour sometimes to document (but you don't usually get paid to document after the clinic closes).
 
I am currently a freshman Exercise Science major at Longwood University. I am hoping to apply to physical therapy grad school after I graduate. An assignment I have for my Intro class is to acquire the resume of a student currently in PT grad school. I want to know what it takes to get in to a graduate program. I would greatly appreciate if someone would send me their resume to my E-mail, [email protected]. Thank you for your time.
 
Ben, I think you should create a New Thread and ask your question. Good luck.
 
benjaminsoccer, please stop re-posting the same thing in various threads. Thanks.
 
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