Role of the Physical Therapist Assistant
Sponsored by: NWACC Physical Therapist
Assistant Program
The format is self-study and there is no charge for this course. The
Arkansas Physical Therapy Board has granted 0.3 CEUs for successful
completion.
Course Description: This course was developed to provide physical therapists and clinical instructors with information they can include in their decision making process to determine how to best utilize the PTA as part of the physical therapy team. The course provides information from the following sources: American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), the Arkansas Physical Therapy Practice Act, the Commission on the Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), and the depth and type education PTA’s receive, with examples provided from the NWACC PTA Program and clinicians in the field.
Course Objectives: Upon completion of this course participants will demonstrate understanding of
1. Differences in roles of the physical therapist and PTA based on guidelines from APTA, CAPTE & the Arkansas Physical Therapy Practice Act.
2. Information to assist the physical therapist in deciding what can be delegated and what cannot be delegated to a PTA
3. Interventions and data collection that may be performed by a PTA
4. Educational requirements of the PTA with emphasis on NWACC PTA Program
5. PTA supervision requirements in different settings for Medicare reimbursement
Presenter: Rhonda Crider, DPT graduated from the University of Central Arkansas with a BS in Physical Therapy in 1984. She has practiced in the following areas of physical therapy: acute care, pulmonary rehabilitation, inpatient & outpatient neurological rehabilitation, inpatient & outpatient orthopedics, and home health. Ms. Crider became a full-time faculty member at NWACC in the Physical Therapist Assistant Program in 1998. In addition to her teaching responsibilities, she became the Academic Clinical Coordinator of Education in 2002.
A copy of this course may be requested by
contacting:
Rhonda Crider, DPT
PTA Program Director
NWACC PTA Program
1 College Drive
Bentonville, AR 72712
rcrider@nwacc.edu 479-619-4253
Clinicians will be sent a CD with course materials including the power point presentation and written examination. A copy of the examination must be returned for grading. Upon successful completion of the examination (a score of 70% on the exam), CEU credits will be awarded. It will take the student between 3 & 4 hours to study the material and complete the exam. There is no charge for this course.
Continuing Education Units: 0.3 CEU for The Role of the PTA is approved by the Arkansas State Board of Physical Therapy