It’s never too early to start shadowing physical therapists, but what is PT shadowing? It means following a licensed PT as they do their job and asking physical therapy-related questions, which will show you the reality of what it means to be a PT in day-to-day life. You can also ask physical therapy-related questions to get a better feel for the job. Following a stranger around their place of work can feel awkward or uncomfortable, but most PTs will be fine with you shadowing, and shadowing can even be beneficial to patients.
Before you become a PT, you need to put in many hours of schooling, so it’s important to ask questions about physical therapy to make sure that this path is the right one for you. At SOL PT, we want future PTs to be prepared and excited for the work they’ll be doing on our team. Shadowing may help you determine whether you want to become a PT.
What to ask when shadowing a PT
Prepare yourself with a list of physical therapy-related questions to ask that can help you understand what the PT you’re shadowing does and why they do it. Here’s a list of 10 physical therapy questions to get you started:
- How did you decide you wanted to become a physical therapist?
This physical therapy question can help you break the ice and start a conversation with the PT you’re shadowing for the day. It can also help you look critically at your own reasons for becoming a PT.
- What was your PT school experience like?
This is an especially important physical therapy question if you haven’t started graduate school yet. You can follow this question up by asking what they did or didn’t like about the program they chose, which can help you weed through the programs you’re considering to determine the best one for you.
- Why did you choose to become a PT versus a PTA?
Physical therapists and physical therapist assistants have very different jobs, and it’s important to know which one you want to do, because knowing why someone else chose to be a PT can help you make that decision.
- What are your favorite/least favorite things about your job?
Even if you love your job, there will be things about it that you don’t like, so it’s important to know the “good and bad” of being a PT so you’re prepared.
- Can you tell me about this patient’s diagnosis or injury and how you’re treating it?
Simply following a PT around won’t tell you everything you need to know about their job, so ask physical therapy-related questions and be curious! It can be enlightening to know not only what the PT is doing, but why they’re doing it.
- What are your typical work hours? How many patients do you see per hour or per day?
This is a more practical physical therapy question about the day-to-day aspects of the job. It’s important to know what kind of a job you’ll be getting into before you start. And knowing what the expectations are for a typical PT can be really helpful in determining if this is the right job for you.
- What are some interesting continuing education courses that you’ve taken?
Continuing education is necessary for most PTs, and depending on what state you practice in, you may need to do up to 40 hours of continuing education every two years. So, the more recommendations you can get for interesting and beneficial classes, the better.
- What are your most rewarding experiences with a patient?
No matter how challenging the job of a PT is, it’s rewarding, too, and holding on to those rewarding experiences can help you through difficult days. Find out why your PT loves the work they do!
- How do you manage difficult patients?
One of the main goals of a PT is to help patients regain mobility. But it requires a lot of interpersonal skills as well. Ask your PT how they manage patients who disagree with their opinions, who bring up hot topics like politics or religion, or who are angry or upset during PT sessions. This may help you be more prepared in the future.
- Are there any books or resources you’d recommend to learn more about physical therapy?
No matter how great the PT you’re shadowing is, they can’t answer everything for you, but they’ll probably have some great resources you can read to learn more on your own.
You don’t need to prepare for shadowing the same way you’d prepare to start a new job, but knowing what physical therapy questions to ask can help you make the best use of your time.
Why we want to help PT students
Just as we want to help our patients succeed in regaining their mobility, we also want to help future PTs succeed in their chosen career path. Our goal is to give you the opportunity to see what being a PT is like and to ask physical therapy-related questions so you can make an informed decision about your education. The better we train PT students today, the more prepared our future PTs will be tomorrow.
Call us or check out our page today to learn more about PT shadowing opportunities.