Daily tasks/Routine activities

1. Plan, prepare, or carry out individually designed programs of physical treatment to maintain, improve, or restore physical functioning, alleviate pain, or prevent physical dysfunction in patients.

2. Perform and document an initial exam, evaluating data to identify problems and determine a diagnosis prior to intervention.

3. Evaluate effects of treatment at various stages and adjust treatments to achieve maximum benefit.

4. Identify and document goals, anticipated progress, and plans for reevaluation.

5. Record prognosis, treatment, response, and progress in patient's chart or enter information into computer.

6.Obtain patients' informed consent to proposed interventions.

7. Test and measure patient's strength, motor development and function, sensory perception, functional capacity, or respiratory or circulatory efficiency and record data.

8. Review physician's referral and patient's medical records to help determine diagnosis and physical therapy treatment required.

9. Discharge patient from physical therapy when goals or projected outcomes have been attained and provide for appropriate follow-up care or referrals.

10. Instruct patient and family in treatment procedures to be continued at home.

11. Administer manual exercises, massage, or traction to help relieve pain, increase patient strength, or decrease or prevent deformity or crippling.

12. Direct, supervise, assess, and communicate with supportive personnel.

13. Inform patients and refer to appropriate practitioners when diagnosis reveals findings outside physical therapy.

14. Provide information to the patient about the proposed intervention, its material risks and expected benefits, and any reasonable alternatives.

15. Confer with the patient, medical practitioners, or appropriate others to plan, implement, or assess the intervention program.

16.Provide educational information about physical therapy or physical therapists, injury prevention, ergonomics, or ways to promote health.

17. Administer treatment involving application of physical agents, using equipment, moist packs, ultraviolet or infrared lamps, or ultrasound machines.

Key knowledge areas

The following knowledge areas aid a physiotherapist   to execute his/her duties better;

Medicine and Dentistry — Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Psychology — Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

Therapy and Counseling — Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

Biology — Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

Skills 

The following skills aid a physiotherapist carry out his/her duties with ease ;.

Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Monitoring — Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Abilities

Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).

Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.