Physical Therapist (LTE)

About the role

This position provides early-intervention physical-therapy services to children from birth to age 3 and their families in home and community settings.

Responsibilities

• Administer and interpret standardized developmental evaluations and informal assessments; provide families with education materials on specific developmental topics.
• Complete visits in the home or community to address development and assess gross motor skills.
• Participate in joint visits with other team providers to assess additional areas of development.
• Provide hands-on manual techniques to enhance motor function.
• Coach parents on education, overall development, and home programming for the child.
• Collaborate with and instruct parents, caregivers, and other Birth to 3 team members during visits on the child’s development and home program to ensure carry-over.
• Complete physical therapy (PT) evaluation reports, discharges, and plans of care with specific short-term goals, treatment strategies, and frequency of treatment.
• Obtain physician signatures on evaluations and discharges; send reports to insurance companies as needed.
• Document progress every 90 days and obtain plan-of-care recertification by the physician.
• Attend eligibility determination evaluations, Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) meetings (initial/ongoing), Transition Planning conferences, and IEP meetings with schools; review and update the IFSP.
• Make therapeutic recommendations for equipment and complete letters of medical necessity when required.
• Collaborate with Durable Medical Equipment (DME) providers, pediatricians, and specialists as needed for the child.
• Decide on outside referrals and recommendations when a child shows signs of a diagnosis, needs additional therapy, or requires medical testing.
• Participate in weekly team meetings to provide updates on progress toward goals, discuss new strategies and supports, address barriers, update the team on medical changes, and examine ways to support the child’s and family’s social and emotional needs.
• Identify family concerns, priorities, routines, and unique characteristics when serving as the primary coach; incorporate the family’s desires and goals into intervention and coaching strategies.
• Engage children and families in interest-based family and community learning centers.
• Determine the need for and complete prior-authorization requirements based on the child’s health insurance or medical assistance.
• Confer with other agencies or institutions serving clients to monitor and coordinate assigned cases.
• Monitor and complete ongoing training requirements to maintain licensure, including client-specific training on medical conditions and new research or assessment tools.
• Provide community education, consultation, and intervention regarding Department services.
• Maintain accurate, current, and timely case records; prepare correspondence, reports, and other documentation as required.
• Work a flexible schedule to meet the needs of families in their natural environments (home and community settings).
• May develop ideas and create educational posts for social media.

Requirements

• General knowledge of the principles, practices, and techniques of physical therapy.
• Good knowledge of materials and equipment used during physical therapy treatments, including their proper care and maintenance.
• Knowledge of community-based human services delivery systems and resources available in the community.
• Ability to make independent decisions and establish effective working relationships with clients, co-workers, other agencies, and the public.
• Ability to provide complex services in accordance with principles common to the specialty.
• Ability to apply laws of confidentiality appropriately.
• Ability to perform job duties using the primary provider approach and to provide and accept colleague-to-colleague coaching.