Physical Therapy Staffing: The Right Staff Is Key

Despite offering needed healthcare services, physical therapy clinics are still businesses. They need to manage their internal procedures, staffing, and billing in order to be profitable and remain open. The physical therapists who work directly with patients are the most visible parts of the staff, but a team of professionals and paraprofessionals support them and ensure that the clinic as a whole is successful.

Staffing a PT clinic includes everything from hiring to managing schedules to handling complaints to transitioning employees into and out of their roles. Owners and operators will need to manage all aspects of staffing and regularly assess their practices to make adjustments based on financial viability, personalities, and goals.

Required Physical Therapy Staffing for a Clinic

The size of the staff at any physical therapy clinic can vary greatly depending on the size of the clinic and their workload to allow for accepting patients. However, generally, there are several positions that are required for all clinics. These will be a mix of clinical professionals delivering services directly to patients and administrative staff working behind the scenes to keep the office running efficiently and profitably.

• Physical Therapists: The primary reason your clinic has patients is because of your physical therapists. Physical therapists must have a current license in the state in which your practice operates. Depending on the types and varieties of patients you plan to treat, you may employ general physical therapists as well as those with specializations in specific areas like pediatrics or cardiovascular.
• Physical Therapy Assistants: PTAs work under the supervision of PTs and assist patients directly with their therapy. They collect data, monitor patient progress, and collaborate with the care team to make changes to treatment plans.
• Receptionists: The staff working at the front desk will answer the phone, greet patients, schedule appointments, and manage patient billing.
• Billing Coordinator: This is generally a separate position from the receptionists. This employee manages insurance claims and verifications, submits paperwork, and processes all billing for the business.
• Management: While the clinic manager may play various roles, often management is concerned with the high-level operations of the clinic. This includes profitability, hiring, training, marketing, building community relationships, and managing the staff.

Depending on the size and purpose of the physical therapy clinic, other professionals may also work in the office.

• Personal or Athletic Trainers: For patients who want to continue to focus on wellness, health, and sports performance, personal trainers working at a PT clinic offer professional support and access to training equipment.
• Aids or Technicians: Having a few PT aids can help a clinic run smoothly. These employees clean equipment, prepare exam rooms, move patients between stations, set up therapy equipment, and generally work to keep patients engaged and supported.
• Maintenance: Whether these tasks are assigned to another employee or a maintenance person is hired to manage them, tasks such as cleaning, washing towels, monitoring equipment, caring for the interior and exterior of the building, and supporting electronic networks will need to be done. If you rent your space, some of this may be included in services provided by your property manager. But you should have a plan for who is responsible for cleaning spills, changing lightbulbs, shoveling snow, and maintaining equipment.
• Other Specialists: If your clinic is big enough, you may also want to bring other specialties in-house. It would be convenient for your patients to have access to occupational therapists, speech therapists, massage therapists, or sports medicine specialists within the same practice.

The Hiring Process

Hiring is time-consuming and complex in any field, but for medical professionals, it can be especially stressful. Factors such as previous experience, certification, and recommendations are essential, but so are soft skills like communication styles, interpersonal skills, and organization. There are many job websites available to companies who are hiring. However, taking the time to make the choice that is the best fit for your clinic and your patients will pay dividends in the future.

In general, you’ll want to follow the following steps when hiring for a new position, whether it is for a board-certified physical therapist, a receptionist, or an insurance and billing specialist.

1. Write a detailed job description: Include what education level, certifications, work experience, or availability is required for the position. Job seekers appreciate information about hours, pay rates, benefits, responsibilities, and expectations.
2. Post on relevant job boards: Sites like Indeed, ZipRecruiter, and Monster are for all job seekers and cast a wide net. Also consider using role-specific sites like the APTA, PT Jungle, or AASPT.
3. Screen applications: The first pass through the applications should eliminate any applicants who don’t meet the basic requirements of the job such as education level or professional certifications. Some job boards have filters that make this easy, but you can also use artificial intelligence (AI) to sort out applications that do not meet minimum requirements.
4. Interviews: Interviews can be in person or virtual, but either way, this is your first chance to get to know the applicant and ask more detailed questions about their experience, skills, and goals. Involve a variety of employees in the interview process and get their impression of which applicant best fits the culture of the company and the needs of typical patients.
5. Check references and certifications: Verify that the applicant is in good standing in your state and that their certifications or educational achievement meet the requirements for the role they are applying for.
6. Clinical assessment: You may invite the top candidates to come to the clinic to meet the staff, interact with the community, and experience the clinic’s culture. Keep in mind that some candidates may not be local, and spending unpaid time at your facility may be more difficult in those cases.
7. Make an offer: When you have a candidate that meets your requirements, make a clear offer. Include all the information they will need to make an informed decision, including pay, benefits, hours, role and responsibilities, expectations, and company culture.

Retaining Staff

Hiring is just the beginning of your relationship with an employee. Hopefully, they will be part of your staff for years to come. Keeping employees on your staff is more than signing a paycheck every two weeks. Employees are looking for competitive wages and benefits, healthy work-life balance, and opportunities for advancement. Regularly evaluate what you offer to your employees and if it’s on par with other similar clinics.

Consider additional perks that make employees want to stay with a company, like flexibile working hours, assistance with continuing education requirements, and creating career pathways for advancement and professional development. Consider implementing career pathing and employee feedback systems, so you understand the goals of your employees and what they value in their work life.

Scheduling and Time Management

While scheduling is essential for PT clinics, as anyone who has sat in a clinic waiting room knows, it can quickly get off track and leave patients frustrated, inconvenienced, and complaining. For physical therapists, PTAs, occupational therapists, speech therapists, and others, every billable minute is important to capture in order to keep the practice viable. But that focus should never overlook the fact that patients need these services and depend on your therapists and staff to recover, meet their health goals, or achieve independence.

To strike this balance between comprehensive patient care and fiscal responsibility, keep these tips in mind when creating schedules.

• Appointments regularly take longer than you anticipate: Give yourself enough time so you aren’t rushing your patients, but also manage schedules so no one is sitting idle in the middle of the day. This balance can take time to find, but it’s worth some experimenting to get it right.
• Think about the times that will be most in demand: Will you see seniors who will opt for earlier appointments, or working adults who will prefer appointments in the evenings? Maybe 3 PM will be most popular because you see children right after school. Consider getting additional help for your busiest times and scheduling breaks during slow hours.
• Establish a cancellation policy: Patients will cancel appointments, but the earlier they do so, the more opportunity you’ll have to fill that spot. Creating a policy where cancellations must be made 24 hours in advance helps your office run smoothly.
• Use software: Your EHR system or patient portal should have a way to manage schedules so patients receive reminders of how often they should return, which practitioner they should see, and their scheduled appointments. This allows patients to self-serve and streamlines the process for your office staff.
• Create consistency: Whenever possible, schedule patients at the same day and time so it becomes a habit. Try to use the same provider, room, and equipment so you know everything they need is available and prepared.

The Role of Travel Physical Therapists

Sometimes, filling a role the clinic needs can be nearly impossible. If a therapist is on short-term leave and their replacement is just temporary, or you are located in a rural area where it is difficult to attract talent, you may want to consider hiring a temporary travel physical therapist. A staffing company can help you find the right candidates and get them started quickly.

A staffing agency or managed service provider (MSP) can guide you through the process, so you hire a short-term physical therapist who is licensed in your state, qualified to work with your patients, and fits in well with your current staff. Just like if you were hiring for a full-time position, you will have the opportunity to write the job description, review candidates, and conduct interviews. Contracts are typically for 13 weeks, but, depending on the needs of your facility, you may be able to contract for shorter- or longer-term.

Managing Staffing at a Physical Therapy Clinic

When hiring and making decisions about benefits, you’ll need to balance the needs of your practice with the desires of current and potential employees. Conduct some market research to understand typical pay rates and benefit packages in your region. Are there lots of open PT positions, or are you flooded with applicants for each job opening? Are there reasonable housing options nearby? Are the schools attractive to new families? The local environment, economy, and community will also play a role in attracting new talent to the area, and to your practice in particular.

You’ll want to ensure you have enough staff to cover all shifts and responsibilities without overburdening a single employee. As a manager, you’re also responsible for keeping the practice financially viable and carefully evaluating whether or not you need more staff members, or if responsibilities can be shared by current employees.

Thinking strategically about your business goals and making sure your current staff understands your long-term vision for the business can create better teamwork and will guide decisions made about staffing.