Physical Therapist Assistant - Mountain State University

Physical Therapist Assistant from Mountain State University is a Campus Associate Physical Therapy degree that prepares you for a Healthcare career. Why choose a career as a Physical Therapist Assistant? Physical Therapist Assistants are skilled personnel who provide services that help improve mobility and relieve pain of patients suffering from injuries or disease. Working under the supervision of a physical therapist , you?ll train patients in the activities of daily living, use special equipment, and evaluate the patient\\\'s progress. You might use exercises, massages, electrical stimulation, paraffin baths, hot and cold packs, traction, and ultrasound to in working with your client. If you?re interested in becoming a PTA, you must have a willingness to work with various, sometimes disabling, conditions, such as strokes, amputations, wound care, burns, low-back pain, arthritis, heart disease, fractures, head injuries, and cerebral palsy. You?ll work with all ages, pediatric to geriatric, and you?ll need good communication skills, physical dexterity and coordination, organization, and a positive attitude. What can I study? The Physical Therapy Assistant Program at MSU leads to an associate degree and takes approximately five semesters to complete. Physical therapist assistants are educated health care providers who work under the supervision of a physical therapist in the provision of physical therapy services. Their duties include assisting physical therapists in implementing programs of care; training patients in exercises and activities of daily living; administering therapeutic modalities, special equipment, and other patient care procedures; communicating with patients, families, physicians, and other health care workers; and reporting and documenting patients? status. The 1+1 physical therapist assistant program prepares students with the knowledge and skills required to assist physical therapists in meeting the physical therapy needs of the public. It is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education, and graduates are eligible to apply for any state?s examination leading to licensure as a physical therapist assistant . Persons with a felony conviction are eligible for licensure based on terms and conditions of the state in which they intend to apply. Following completion of the PTA program, students are wish to pursue an individualized health science proram can draw from a broad base of coursework to complete a B.S. in health studies. Why choose MSU? Employment. Over the past 3 years, graduates of the PTA program who pass the licensure exam and actively seek employment have enjoyed 100% graduate employment rate. Student Physical Therapist Assistant Association. The SPTAA provides student interaction and discussion of professional issues among its members. The organization gives PTA students the opportunity to participate in and recognize the importance of community service projects and also provides campus and community representation of the Physical Therapist Assistant Program. Past community service projects have included the Salvation Army?s Coat Drive, National MS Society Walk, clothing donations to local churches, donations to local food banks and women?s shelters, participation in local health fairs, and an Easter egg hunt for a local day care. Career Physical therapist assistants work in a broad range of settings, including hospitals, outpatient clinics or offices, rehabilitation facilities, skilled nursing, extended care, education or research centers, schools, hospices, fitness centers, and other sports training facilities. The average salary in southern West Virginia for physical therapists is $30,000-$32,000. Employment of physical therapist assistants is expected to grow much faster than the average through the year 2012. Over the long run, demand for PTAs will continue to rise due to the influence of these factors: 1. baby-boom generation is entering prime age for heart attack and strokes, increasing demand for cardiac and physical rehabilitation, 2. future medical developments which permit more trauma patients to survive, creating added demand for therapy services, 3. growing elderly population is particularly vulnerable to chronic, debilitating conditions requiring therapeutic services, and 4. to keep costs down, more physical therapists will design a treatment plan and then utilize assistants to provide many aspects of the plan. View more details on Mountain State University . Ask your questions and apply online for this program or find other related Physical Therapy courses.