Physical therapy positively influences an individual's overall health, wellness, and fitness by providing services that positively impact physical fitness. Improving an individual's level of physical fitness can prevent, remediate, improve, maintain, slow the decline of, or lower the risk of impairments, functional limitations, and disabilities. Physical therapy services that impact physical fitness include interventions that affect cardiovascular/pulmonary endurance; muscle strength, power, endurance and flexibility; relaxation; and body composition.
The information on the following and linked pages is primarily targeted at two priority populations identified by the APTA Board of Directors in an adopted plan:
Primary Priority Population: Individuals with acute and chronic impairments, functional limitations, and disabilities related to movement, function, and health.
Secondary Priority Population: Individuals with identified risk for impairments, functional limitations, and disabilities related to movement, function, and health.
Although it is recognized that the provision of physical fitness services to healthy populations as a stand alone program or as part of a comprehensive wellness program is an appropriate role for a physical therapist, the scope of the plan is focused on the two identified target populations, those with health issues and those with identified risk for health issues.
The information linked through the following pages is intended to improve your ability to appropriately increase your provision of services that have a positive impact on the physical fitness of your patients and clients at all levels of acuity and in all settings with an emphasis on the two priority groups.
You should also consider that when providing physical therapy services to address physical fitness for individuals or groups, in either traditional or non-traditional settings, the components of patient or client management that define the practice of physical therapy still apply. The level of detail required for an initial examination/evaluation would be based on the complexity of the patient or client. If your initial examination/evaluation is truly a screen, the process may end there with a referral to another provider or a determination that further evaluation and services are not required. But if you determine the individual requires ongoing services, then the other components of patient/client management, that is examination, evaluation, diagnosis, prognosis (including plan of care) and intervention also apply.
Again, the intricacy of the plan of care and the frequency of change will be based on the complexity of the patient or client. More complex patients or settings may necessitate significantly more detail in the examination and intervention processes while some community settings for example and less complex patients or clients may require shorter and less detailed examinations, plans of care, and follow up. However, all services provided as physical therapy to patients or clients should consider and appropriately address the five components of patient client management: examination, evaluation, diagnosis, prognosis, and intervention.
Patient Care Resources
Additional Information