Salary difference when working in a in-patient vs out-patient setting

[Passion4healing]

Hi, I am wondering if people are paid more in a in-patient setting or an out-patient setting. Working in hospitals or opening your own clinic.

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[goyo1010]

Many factors contribute to a PT's pay. Generally, PTs are paid more in an in-patient setting than an out-patient setting. Depending on the volume of your clinic, you could get paid more than if you worked in a hospital/clinic setting.

 

[Passion4healing]

When you work in an in-patient setting, does that mean that you have to work odd hours and be there to care for the patient at all times?

 

[goyo1010]

When and how you treat patients depends on how the hospital rehab team works, and how that team works with the other departments in the hospital. Many rehab departments schedule your patients by day, but your hours are usually regular (one of the perks of PT). So, for example, at one hospital you would work from 8am-5pm one day. But the next day, you don't have as many patients to see, so you may be done an hour or two earlier. You may see the same patient once or twice a day at a time when the patient will be able to participate, e.g. not undergoing dialysis, medication times, meal times, etc. Also, you may not see the same patient the next day.

 

[jblil]

OP - from the Excel spreadsheet in the link below, it appears that PTs in hospitals report slightly lower starting salaries than PTs in outpatient clinics. However, the sample size is small.
http://dptfinances.wordpress.com/2012/07/10/hello-world/

I've been shadowing a PT in a large teaching hospital for a year and can see pros/cons to the situation. Pros are: steady hours (no overtime, unless you ask for it), a relaxed work environment (1 hr allotted for each patient and seemingly no pressure to rush the treatment), and a very varied caseload (burn patients, strokes, car accidents, etc). Cons are: probably a lower salary, and office politics (somewhat unavoidable when you have a large group). Personally, I'd want to work in acute in-patient care when I graduate, at least for a year or two. That seems to be the best way to get exposure to a lot of varied conditions.