Job Description, Daily Responsibilities, and Work Life
Physical Medicine and Rehab Physicians
Physical Medicine and Rehab Physicians diagnose and treat disorders requiring physiotherapy to provide physical, mental, and occupational rehabilitation.
Table of Contents
Job Description
Physical Medicine and Rehab Physicians diagnose and treat disorders requiring physiotherapy to provide physical, mental, and occupational rehabilitation. They also document examination results, treatment plans, and patients’ outcomes.
Other tasks include:
- Examine patients to assess mobility, strength, communication, or cognition.
- Assess characteristics of patients’ pain such as intensity, location, or duration using standardized clinical measures.
- Provide inpatient or outpatient medical management of neuromuscular disorders, musculoskeletal trauma, acute and chronic pain, deformity or amputation, cardiac or pulmonary disease, or other disabling conditions.
- Monitor effectiveness of pain management interventions such as medication or spinal injections.
- Develop comprehensive plans for immediate and long-term rehabilitation including therapeutic exercise; speech and occupational therapy; counseling; cognitive retraining; patient, family or caregiver education; or community reintegration.
- Coordinate physical medicine and rehabilitation services with other medical activities.
We asked Physical Medicine and Rehab Physicians how satisfied they are with their job. Here is what they said.
74%
82%
74% of them said they were satisfied with their job and 82% said they find that their job makes the world a better place or helps to make someone else’s life better.
Typical Day At Work
On a daily basis, Physical Medicine and Rehab Physicians document examination results, treatment plans, and patients’ outcomes. They assess characteristics of patients’ pain such as intensity, location, or duration using standardized clinical measures.
A typical day for a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physician will also include:
- Examine patients to assess mobility, strength, communication, or cognition.
- Prescribe therapy services, such as electrotherapy, ultrasonography, heat or cold therapy, hydrotherapy, debridement, short-wave or microwave diathermy, and infrared or ultraviolet radiation, to enhance rehabilitation.
- Prescribe physical therapy to relax the muscles and improve strength.
- Provide inpatient or outpatient medical management of neuromuscular disorders, musculoskeletal trauma, acute and chronic pain, deformity or amputation, cardiac or pulmonary disease, or other disabling conditions.
- Consult or coordinate with other rehabilitative professionals including physical and occupational therapists, rehabilitation nurses, speech pathologists, neuropsychologists, behavioral psychologists, social workers, or medical technicians.
We asked some Physical Medicine and Rehab Physicians a few questions to find out what else does their work day look like. Here is what we found.
Do you have telephone conversations everyday in this job? | 73% said yes | |
How important is it to work in a team in this job? | 83% said very important | |
Do you have group discussions everyday in this job? | 89% said yes | |
Do you talk or work with customers everyday in this job? | 73% said yes | |
Do you have to deal with angry customers everyday in this job? | 3% said yes | |
Do you have to make decisions everyday in this job? | 75% said yes |
Other responsibilities
Besides their typical day, Physical Medicine and Rehab Physicians also prescribe orthotic and prosthetic applications and adaptive equipment, such as wheelchairs, bracing, or communication devices, to maximize patient function and self-sufficiency. They may also conduct physical tests such as functional capacity evaluations to determine injured workers’ capabilities to perform the physical demands of their jobs.
On a weekly to monthly basis, Physical Medicine and Rehab Physicians Perform electrodiagnosis including electromyography, nerve conduction studies, or somatosensory evoked potentials of neuromuscular disorders or damage. They might also Diagnose or treat performance-related conditions such as sports injuries or repetitive motion injuries.
In addition, they Consult or coordinate with other rehabilitative professionals including physical and occupational therapists, rehabilitation nurses, speech pathologists, neuropsychologists, behavioral psychologists, social workers, or medical technicians.
Although specific duties may vary, many of them Monitor effectiveness of pain management interventions such as medication or spinal injections.
To some Physical Medicine and Rehab Physicians, it is also their responsibility to Develop comprehensive plans for immediate and long-term rehabilitation including therapeutic exercise; speech and occupational therapy; counseling; cognitive retraining; patient, family or caregiver education; or community reintegration.
Working life
More than 40 hours per week
Regular schedule like a 9 to 5
In a typical work week as a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physician, you can expect to work more than 40 hours per week.
Is this right for me
The Thinkers and The Helpers
People who are suitable for this job tends to like working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. They like searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally..
They also like working with, communicating with, and teaching people. They like helping or providing service to others.
You can read more about these career personality types here.
Learn more about Physical Medicine and Rehab Physicians
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