Geriatric physical therapist vs physical therapist

The differences between geriatric physical therapists and physical therapists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a physical therapist has an average salary of $73,070, which is higher than the $68,810 average annual salary of a geriatric physical therapist.

The top three skills for a geriatric physical therapist include rehabilitation, home health and social work. The most important skills for a physical therapist are patients, rehabilitation, and home health.

Geriatric physical therapist vs physical therapist overview

	Geriatric Physical Therapist	Physical Therapist
Yearly salary	$68,810	$73,070
Hourly rate	$33.08	$35.13
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	69,468	86,697
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	-	-

Geriatric physical therapist vs physical therapist salary

Geriatric physical therapists and physical therapists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Geriatric Physical Therapist	Physical Therapist
Average salary	$68,810	$73,070
Salary range	Between $44,000 And $105,000	Between $56,000 And $94,000
Highest paying City	-	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	Parkway
Best paying industry	-	Professional

Differences between geriatric physical therapist and physical therapist education

There are a few differences between a geriatric physical therapist and a physical therapist in terms of educational background:

	Geriatric Physical Therapist	Physical Therapist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 51%	Bachelor's Degree, 58%
Most common major	Physical Therapy	Physical Therapy
Most common college	Columbia University in the City of New York	Duke University

Geriatric physical therapist vs physical therapist demographics

Here are the differences between geriatric physical therapists' and physical therapists' demographics:

	Geriatric Physical Therapist	Physical Therapist
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 21.4% Female, 78.6%	Male, 36.3% Female, 63.7%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 12.9% White, 71.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 7.5% Asian, 14.3% White, 70.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	12%	12%

Differences between geriatric physical therapist and physical therapist duties and responsibilities

Geriatric physical therapist example responsibilities.

Demonstrate working knowledge of community mental health services identify in the Medicaid guidelines and attain contractual outcomes within designate time frames.
Care for veterans in both independent and SNF environments.
Screen, evaluate and treat residents with diverse disease processes in multiple SNF's.
Provide rehabilitation services as per patient requirement.
Administer therapeutic hot packs, cold packs and personally handle various electrical stimulation treatments; ultrasound, electrical stimulation.
Work to decrease ICU length of stay, vent days, and hospital length of stay.

Physical therapist example responsibilities.

Conduct in-services and train colleagues in effective techniques for safely managing the CVA patient.
Achieve high level of patients satisfaction due to sound clinical management, quality of care and compassion.
Perform physical therapy evaluation and treatment of orthopedic patients and supervise PTAs.
Progress patients' functional mobility during treatment sessions by modifying task, intensity, and adaptive equipment utilize.
Motivate patients to participate in treatment sessions by educating them on the benefits of early mobility following cardiac and thoracic surgery.
Experience include IFSP and IEP writing and implementation

Geriatric physical therapist vs physical therapist skills

Common geriatric physical therapist skills

Rehabilitation, 40%
Home Health, 33%
Social Work, 7%
Family Therapy, 4%
Discharge Planning, 4%
Substance Abuse, 3%

Common physical therapist skills

Patients, 30%
Rehabilitation, 15%
Home Health, 13%
Quality Care, 5%
Physical Therapy, 3%
Treatment Programs, 3%

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Geriatric Physical Therapist
Geriatric Physical Therapist vs Physical Therapist

Updated January 8, 2025

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