Pediatric physical therapist vs outpatient physical therapist

The differences between pediatric physical therapists and outpatient physical therapists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a pediatric physical therapist has an average salary of $75,699, which is higher than the $66,359 average annual salary of an outpatient physical therapist.

The top three skills for a pediatric physical therapist include patients, patient care and rehabilitation. The most important skills for an outpatient physical therapist are patients, physical therapy, and rehabilitation.

Pediatric physical therapist vs outpatient physical therapist overview

	Pediatric Physical Therapist	Outpatient Physical Therapist
Yearly salary	$75,699	$66,359
Hourly rate	$36.39	$31.90
Growth rate	17%	17%
Number of jobs	98,862	119,973
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Master's Degree, 49%
Average age	41	41
Years of experience	-	-

What does a pediatric physical therapist do?

Pediatric physical therapists are specialized in improving the lives as well as the everyday tasks of children who suffer from a vast range of injuries and congenital disorders. Their primary duty is to aid the child and their family to help each child to reach their optimum potential to work independently and to encourage active engagement at home, in school, as well as in the community. Other responsibilities include assessing and providing treatment for impediments in motor skills as well as evaluating the child's strength, posture, flexibility, pace, coordination, balance, and sensory processing. Additionally, they are trained to examine the motor progress using specification testing for age equivalents.

What does an outpatient physical therapist do?

An outpatient physical therapist specializes in diagnosing and treating a patient's movement dysfunction often caused by an illness or injury. Their responsibilities revolve around studying a patient's medical history, performing initial assessments, crafting a specific care and treatment plan, and discussing the extent of treatments with patients and their families. An outpatient physical therapist may also provide advice to families or guardians on how to assist and care for patients at home, prescribe medication, and perform follow-up consultations.

Pediatric physical therapist vs outpatient physical therapist salary

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

	Pediatric Physical Therapist	Outpatient Physical Therapist
Average salary	$75,699	$66,359
Salary range	Between $55,000 And $103,000	Between $40,000 And $108,000
Highest paying City	Lynnwood, WA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	Washington	California
Best paying company	Tenet Healthcare	Accountable Healthcare Holdings Corp.
Best paying industry	Professional	Non Profits

Differences between pediatric physical therapist and outpatient physical therapist education

There are a few differences between a pediatric physical therapist and an outpatient physical therapist in terms of educational background:

	Pediatric Physical Therapist	Outpatient Physical Therapist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 53%	Master's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Physical Therapy	Social Work
Most common college	Duke University	Boston University

Pediatric physical therapist vs outpatient physical therapist demographics

Here are the differences between pediatric physical therapists' and outpatient physical therapists' demographics:

	Pediatric Physical Therapist	Outpatient Physical Therapist
Average age	41	41
Gender ratio	Male, 14.4% Female, 85.6%	Male, 24.4% Female, 75.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 7.5% Asian, 11.4% White, 73.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 3.9% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 7.8% Asian, 11.3% White, 72.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	12%	12%

Differences between pediatric physical therapist and outpatient physical therapist duties and responsibilities

Pediatric physical therapist example responsibilities.

Achieve high level of patients satisfaction due to sound clinical management, quality of care and compassion.
Experience in administering modalities including: NMES, IFC, iontophoresis, ultrasound, and cervical traction.
Evaluate and write letters of necessity to obtain adaptive equipment including: mobility devices, adaptive seating device and positioning devices.
Start OT career at Eisenhower as regular staff OTR; continue to work often as long-term/temporary OTR.
Evaluate patients in medical and surgical ICU and provide ROM and ambulation exercises and prepare them for the discharge.
Educate patients on performing daily living activities and the use of supportive equipment such as crutches, wheelchairs and canes.

Outpatient physical therapist example responsibilities.

Facilitate development of coping techniques to manage psychiatric symptoms effectively; educate patients on importance of medication management and compliance.
Demonstrate working knowledge of community mental health services identify in the Medicaid guidelines and attain contractual outcomes within designate time frames.
Perform assessments with clients to determine diagnosis and need of services.
Complete intake assessment and formulate diagnosis.
Assist veterans with transportation to interviews.
Provide active case management service for veterans in residential treatment.

Pediatric physical therapist vs outpatient physical therapist skills

Common pediatric physical therapist skills

Patients, 25%
Patient Care, 12%
Rehabilitation, 9%
Autism, 6%
Home Health, 6%
Physical Therapy, 4%

Common outpatient physical therapist skills

Patients, 23%
Physical Therapy, 17%
Rehabilitation, 11%
Patient Care, 10%
Therapy Services, 5%
Social Work, 5%

Pediatric Physical Therapist vs. similar jobs

Pediatric Physical Therapist related careers

Pediatric Physical Therapist related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Pediatric Physical Therapist
Pediatric Physical Therapist vs Outpatient Physical Therapist

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse healthcare practitioner and technical jobs