Physical therapy technician vs assistant

The differences between physical therapy technicians and assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an assistant has an average salary of $37,363, which is higher than the $35,161 average annual salary of a physical therapy technician.

The top three skills for a physical therapy technician include patients, patient care and rehabilitation. The most important skills for an assistant are patients, customer service, and patient care.

Physical therapy technician vs assistant overview

	Physical Therapy Technician	Assistant
Yearly salary	$35,161	$37,363
Hourly rate	$16.90	$17.96
Growth rate	24%	-8%
Number of jobs	66,670	557,900
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 68%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Average age	39	50
Years of experience	-	2

What does a physical therapy technician do?

A physical therapy technician supports both the physical therapists and their physical therapy assistants in planning and implementing patient care. You are expected to perform varied duties and responsibilities that include responding to patients' requests for assistance, assisting with patient preparation before treatment, and maintaining the equipment used by the physical therapist during treatment sessions. In addition, you will be responsible for maintaining patient satisfaction and patient confidentiality. A physical therapy technician will also perform some administrative tasks such as overseeing inventory and scheduling appointments and treatments.

What does an assistant do?

An assistant intern is responsible for facilitating administrative and clerical tasks as assigned by the management. Assistant interns' duties include keeping records of meetings, receiving calls and handling customer inquiries, assisting on writing reports and data entry processing, cooperating and providing support for business events, and adhering to company policies and regulatory procedures. Successful assistant interns must have excellent time-management, multi-tasking, and communication skills. They must be a team player and fast-learner to handle various tasks in the corporate industry.

Physical therapy technician vs assistant salary

Physical therapy technicians and assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Physical Therapy Technician	Assistant
Average salary	$35,161	$37,363
Salary range	Between $20,000 And $59,000	Between $16,000 And $82,000
Highest paying City	New York, NY	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	New York	Massachusetts
Best paying company	St. Tammany Health System	Latham & Watkins
Best paying industry	Health Care	Education

Differences between physical therapy technician and assistant education

There are a few differences between a physical therapy technician and an assistant in terms of educational background:

	Physical Therapy Technician	Assistant
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 68%	Bachelor's Degree, 49%
Most common major	Kinesiology	Business
Most common college	University of Virginia	Western Carolina University

Physical therapy technician vs assistant demographics

Here are the differences between physical therapy technicians' and assistants' demographics:

	Physical Therapy Technician	Assistant
Average age	39	50
Gender ratio	Male, 37.8% Female, 62.2%	Male, 40.7% Female, 59.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.1% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 13.2% Asian, 7.8% White, 66.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 3.8% White, 65.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	7%	6%

Differences between physical therapy technician and assistant duties and responsibilities

Physical therapy technician example responsibilities.

Manage flexible schedule at various company facilities categorize as ILF, ALF, and SNF.
Assist patients in performing ADL tasks and the use of prescribe adaptive equipment.
Help with ADL's for each patient to make sure they make it to the therapy gym.
Schedule rehab sessions, transport patients to sessions, maintain the cleanliness of treatment area and order supplies.
Administer therapeutic ultrasound and prepare patients for mechanical traction.
Assist patients in performing rehabilitation exercises on the equipment; ensure safety and equipment use guidelines are follow.

Assistant example responsibilities.

Manage circulations, including educational textbooks and DVDS, video technology and supplies.
Manage branches providing information technology support, logistics, training and operational support.
Manage company's twitter account and communicate with multiple physical therapy providers around the country
Optimize productivity in prioritizing and managing special projects, PowerPoint presentations for classes, and proctore exams for undergraduate classes.
Assist in jewelry design and assembly, manage company Facebook page, participate in wholesale buying, and manage retail inventory
Manage and update company Facebook page with daily updates, finding/sharing relevant and interesting information, and encouraging fan engagement.

Physical therapy technician vs assistant skills

Common physical therapy technician skills

Patients, 43%
Patient Care, 13%
Rehabilitation, 7%
Customer Service, 6%
Occupational Therapy, 3%
Treatment Rooms, 2%

Common assistant skills

Patients, 27%
Customer Service, 13%
Patient Care, 8%
CPR, 5%
Sales Floor, 5%
Scheduling Appointments, 3%

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Healthcare Support Industry
Physical Therapy Technician
Physical Therapy Technician vs Assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

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