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What is a home care physical therapist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
3 min read
Quoted expert
Dr. Ken Kosior Prof.

A home care physical therapist provides therapeutic services defined in treatment plans in residential settings. These people work with case managers and physicians. Patients may include individuals with disabilities, including fractures and heart disease, and also accident victims. Evaluating assigned patients and establishing treatment plans and goals is one of your duties. You are to provide individualized therapy treatment according to the plan of the care to patients. Also, you are to recommend and develop new therapy services in conjunction with staff. In addition, it is expected that you complete documentation accurately and timely, and you need to do all these within professional standards.

Being a home care physical therapist requires that you have excellent verbal and written communication skills, as well as strong analytical and organizational skills. You must be able to pass out good and sound judgment. Educationally, you must have at least a bachelor's degree in health sciences, kinesiology, or physical therapy. Home care physical therapists earn an average salary of $61,024 per year.

What general advice would you give to a home care physical therapist?

Dr. Ken Kosior Prof.Dr. Ken Kosior Prof. LinkedIn profile

Chair & Assistant Professor, Website

Earning potential has grown with the demand for skills rehabilitation professionals. The best way to maximize growth and salary is continuing education (certificates, advanced credentials, and specialization), exploring non-clinical opportunities in growing fields of healthcare (software, technology, health & wellness), and leveraging your professional degree for per diem, or part-time, employment to build your professional experience.
ScoreHome Care Physical TherapistUS Average
Salary
5.6

Avg. Salary $71,303

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level
8.2

Growth rate 17%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity
3.6
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.47%

Asian 14.84%

Black or African American 3.64%

Hispanic or Latino 7.37%

Unknown 3.73%

White 69.95%

Gender

female 63.45%

male 36.55%

Age - 40
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 40
Stress level
8.2

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level
10.0

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance
6.7

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Home care physical therapist career paths

Key steps to become a home care physical therapist

  1. Explore home care physical therapist education requirements

    Most common home care physical therapist degrees

    Bachelor's

    62.5 %

    Master's

    18.3 %

    Doctorate

    15.6 %
  2. Start to develop specific home care physical therapist skills

    SkillsPercentages
    Patients34.72%
    Home Health23.71%
    Rehabilitation13.09%
    Restore Function5.46%
    Medicare3.91%
  3. Complete relevant home care physical therapist training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New home care physical therapists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a home care physical therapist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real home care physical therapist resumes.
  4. Research home care physical therapist duties and responsibilities

    • Demonstrate working knowledge of community mental health services identify in the Medicaid guidelines and attain contractual outcomes within designate time frames.
    • Complete documentation and billing for Medicare and Medicaid base on federal and state laws.
    • Deliver home-based physical therapy services to adult patients with general medical and orthopedic conditions.
    • Show true sympathy and compassion for optimal results.
  5. Prepare your home care physical therapist resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your home care physical therapist resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a home care physical therapist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable home care physical therapist resume templates

    Build a professional home care physical therapist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your home care physical therapist resume.
    Home Care Physical Therapist Resume
    Home Care Physical Therapist Resume
    Home Care Physical Therapist Resume
    Home Care Physical Therapist Resume
    Home Care Physical Therapist Resume
    Home Care Physical Therapist Resume
    Home Care Physical Therapist Resume
    Home Care Physical Therapist Resume
    Home Care Physical Therapist Resume
  6. Apply for home care physical therapist jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a home care physical therapist job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first home care physical therapist job

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Average home care physical therapist salary

The average home care physical therapist salary in the United States is $71,303 per year or $34 per hour. Home care physical therapist salaries range between $47,000 and $107,000 per year.

Average home care physical therapist salary
$71,303 Yearly
$34.28 hourly

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Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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