What Does a Pediatric Physical Therapist Do?
I get this question quite a bit when I tell people what I do for a living. It’s a great question so let me explain how pediatric physical therapists work with children from birth to teenage years.
From birth, a baby is expected to achieve milestones including their ability to feed from a breast/bottle when they are only hours old, sitting by 6 months, and walking by at least 15 months. Pediatricians will recommend physical therapy for a child when that child has not yet met a physical milestone as expected for their age. You do not need a referral from a physician to be seen by a physical therapist. However, most insurance companies require a referral from a medical doctor, so you will have to check with your insurance provider to see what their requirements are for coverage of physical therapy services. There can be several reasons why a child is behind on their motor skills. For example, prematurity, underlying medical diagnosis/disease, or a lack of exposure and practice of physical skills can cause a child to fall behind on physical milestones. Pediatric physical therapists work in several settings including: in the NICU, in the patient’s home, in an outpatient clinic setting, and also in public schools.
The first visit with the physical therapist will consist of an evaluation. The evaluation typically takes 1 hour to complete with a caregiver present for the duration of the assessment to provide more medical history (if anything significant), background information, and the caregiver’s primary concerns. The physical therapist will look at your child’s posture, strength, endurance, coordination, amount of mobility in his joints, balance, and movement patterns. This will be done by observation of movement and encouragement to play. After the evaluation is complete, the physical therapist will determine if your child will benefit from further physical therapy sessions.
Regular sessions with a pediatric physical therapist are typically play-based. What does play-based mean? That means that all interventions - whether it's strengthening exercises, stretching, or working on balance - all are in the form of playing with your child. It is the child’s job to learn through playing and it is the physical therapists’ job to encourage targeted learning through play! Sessions should consist of a balance of hard work and fun for you and your child. Another essential aspect to a physical therapist’s intervention is caregiver education. Providing the caregiver(s) with the “why” and “how” is important for everyone to be on the same page and for caregivers to be successful at their “homework” with their munchkin until the next session. Physical therapists continually collaborate with the family to first develop an individualized plan, and also to encourage the primary caregivers to regularly implement treatment strategies in the home.
I hope you have learned something about pediatric physical therapy! If you are concerned about your child’s movement, strength, or milestones, find a pediatric physical therapist near you.
“Pediatric physical therapists are movement experts who aim to improve the independence and quality of movement in children’s life through play-based interventions."
