Non-Clinical Jobs for Physical Therapists – Overview
People often wonder whether there are non-clinical jobs for physiotherapists. The answer is yes, and there are several attractive options for non-clinical jobs for physical therapists.
If you aren’t as excited about your current job as when you joined, you should seek non-clinical jobs in your expertise.
This career change is also ideal for physiotherapists who are unsatisfied with their current salary. Because of its flexibility, you may even consider shifting to a non-clinical job.
Whatever the reason, we have a list of the best non-clinical jobs for physical therapists here.
Top 5 Non-Clinical Jobs for Physical Therapists
Here are some of the most popular choices for non-clinical jobs for physical therapists in the US:
Top Non-Clinical Jobs for Physical Therapists
1 – Utilization Reviewer
Utilization Review (UR) roles were filled mainly by registered nurses until recently. However, today, physiotherapists (PTs) are being increasingly recruited for this post.
Utilization reviewers are also known as physical therapy reviewers or clinical reviewers. They usually work with insurance companies or insurance carriers.
Utilization review involves reviewing cases and managing insurance claims from policyholders. This job can sometimes be a work-from-home or offer remarkable flexibility in working hours.
You need a few years of clinical experience to apply for a Utilization Review job.
Advantages of Becoming a Utilization Reviewer
- Enjoy flexible work hours
- Possible partial or complete remote working facility (work-from-home)
- Leverage your PT degree
- Enjoy a considerably higher salary
2 – Educator
Physical therapists tend to make great educators. As a physiotherapist, your job mostly requires advising and educating patients, families, caregivers and other healthcare professionals.
Hence, education is a natural transition for physiotherapists looking into a non-clinical job profile.
Education is one of the most essential aspects of physiotherapy. PTs have been entering the education field for years now, and the educational job prospects for physical therapists are also numerous.
Physiotherapists are perfectly qualified to teach at colleges, universities and medical schools. This is especially true for subjects like biomechanics and anatomy.
Also, you can even teach online educational courses from the comfort of your home, making this career incredibly flexible and feasible.
Advantages of Becoming an Educator
- Keep physiotherapy knowledge fresh
- Shape the next generation of professional clinicians
- Work among the younger generation
- Enjoy reasonable pay and job flexibility
3 – Rehab Liaison
A rehab liaison is responsible for filling rehabilitation facilities’ beds with the correct patients. This nonclinical job profile requires strong marketing and sales skills.
You would often have to sell services to physicians, case managers, or the community.
Rehab liaisons, also known as clinical liaisons, have flexible work hours. This is a great career choice for physiotherapists who like to work in teams and independently.
You must not acquire additional licensing to become a professional rehab/clinical liaison.
Still, you can spend considerable time with patients without being directly involved in their treatment.
Advantages of Becoming a Rehab Liaison
- Easy to transition if you have worked previously in inpatient rehab or acute care
- The salary range is on par with most acute care job profiles
- You can work with patients but involve yourself less emotionally and physically
4 – Rehab Innovation and Technology
Have you ever wanted to work with robots? How often do you wish to run clinical trials and contribute to innovations in your field? You might be surprised that you can do all this with a physical therapist’s qualification.
Numerous research organizations today are hiring physiotherapists as clinical trainers, consultants, marketers, etc.
The input from physiotherapists is crucial for engineers and designers to create practical and useful assistive technology.
In addition, you can easily find a job within industries looking to streamline healthcare delivery. For instance, an EMR company may seek an account executive to talk with rehab patients.
Advantages of Becoming a Rehab Consultant
- Get involved in creating cutting-edge technological innovations
- Enjoy unprecedented creativity with a non-clinical job
- Offer clinical expertise to scores of designers and engineers
5 – Recruiter
As a physiotherapist, if you have worked in rehab, becoming a recruiter can be an excellent non-clinical job choice.
This is especially true for those who have experience in travel physical therapy.
Physiotherapy recruiters usually work with rehabilitation facilities. Their job is to ensure patients are matched with the perfect rehab program. Your job may involve working as a healthcare recruiter for a staffing company.
This often requires you to coordinate with rehab centers looking for professionally certified physiotherapists. You would be required to screen the candidates and fill the positions appropriately.
You can even become an independent recruiter. To do this, you can contact the recruiting company directly and cut out the middleman completely.
Advantages of Becoming a Recruiter
- Enjoy meeting and socializing with people of all types
- Use existing connections to help find the right candidate for any job profile
- Enjoy a higher salary and extensive commissions on a job well done
Conclusion
There are several different types of interesting non-clinical jobs for physical therapists in the US, from educators to recruiters. You have a plethora of choices in this.
Make sure to choose the nonclinical job which offers the most to you.
Please check the salary range, working hours, and employment benefits before applying for any non clinical jobs for physical therapists. For more information on career paths in physical therapy, visit the American Physical Therapy Association’s Career Center: APTA Career Center.
See Also
Non Clinical Physician Assistant Jobs
Medical Device Clinical Trials
How to Become a Dermatologist?
Nurse Practitioner Salary in the US
Does Medicare Cover Physical Therapy?
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