Essential Functions Necessary to Perform as a Graduate PTA

I. COMMUNICATIONS SKILLS

Ability to:

1. Professionally communicate to the patients of all ages and cognitive abilities the name of the treatment being rendered, the purpose of the treatment, any precautions, the commands for the treatment, the call system and the patient's response to the treatment.
2. Write a grammatically correct progress note that includes the patient's age, sex, body type, identification number, behavior, diagnoses, presentation, subjective complaints, objective observations and treatment rendered, patient's response to the treatment, patient's improvement and recommendations to the P.T. for changes in the program.
3. professionally communicate in staff and interdepartmental meetings by providing patient treatment information.
4. obtain information from standard patient charts including: patient data, diagnoses, precautions, P.T. evaluation and program plan, and physician and nurses progress notes.
5. use non verbal commands appropriate for patients who do not understand verbal commands.
6. use eye contact during communication.
7.  respond to direction, accept constructive criticism, describe own limitations.

II. PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

Ability to:

1. Lift 50 pounds and turn while lifting 50 pounds without producing pain. Transfer a patient using maximal assistance.
2. Ambulate a patient through an obstacle course providing maximal assistance guarding.
3. Interpret and manipulate all the adjustments on all of the modalities of heat, cold, mechanics and electricity.
4. Use effective body mechanics to avoid self injury.
5. Move the patient through range of motion of all joints. Take goniometric measurements of all joints.