Essential Functions of a Physical Therapy Student

The purpose of this document is to delineate the specific demands of the physical therapy professional education program so that candidates/students may compare their own capabilities with these educational challenges and make requests for reasonable accommodation, as necessary.

For students who have not established affiliation with The Office Of Accessibility and Disability Resources and are experiencing disability access barriers or are interested in a referral to health care resources for a potential disability or would like information regarding eligibility for academic accommodations, please contact the The Office Of Accessibility and Disability Resources Office by calling 419.530.4981 or sending an email to StudentDisability@utoledo.edu.

Essential Function: I		A candidate/student must be able to or must have:
Observation	A	Hear with or without aides.
	B	Visual perception, which includes depth and 20/20 acuity with or without correction.
	C	Acquire a defined level of information presented through demonstrations and other learning experiences. The required learning outcomes include delineation and analysis of quantitative and qualitative characteristics and/or criteria. This includes but is not limited to information conveyed through the use of vision, hearing and tactile sensation.
	D	Learn to perform visual and tactile physical examinations and treatments and to discern the differences and variations in shape, and general appearance between normal and abnormal, soft, and hard tissues.
	E	Learn to observe a patient accurately, up close and at a distance, and observe and appreciate verbal, non-verbal communications, and other graphic images to determine a patient’s history and to determine a patient’s condition and safety when performing physical or manual techniques.
	F	Understand and interpret information from written documents and to process information presented in images from paper, films, slides, video, computer, and cadaver dissection.
Essential Function: II		A candidate/student must be able to or must have:
Communication	A	Demonstrate English proficiency in reading, writing and speech. Physical Therapy education presents exceptional challenges in the volume and breadth of required reading and the necessity to impart information to others.
	B	Complete forms according to directions in a complete and timely fashion.
	C	Expressively and receptively communicate effectively with others in verbal, non-verbal, and written forms, demonstrating sensitivity to individual and cultural differences. Communication includes the ability to read, listen, observe body language, speak, and write in a manner, which is concise, accurate, technically correct, and non-judgmental. Computer literacy is required.
	D	Seek out, use, and provide constructive feedback for improving personal and therapeutic interventions.

Essential Function: III		A candidate/student must be able to or must have:
Motor Function	A	Sufficient motor skills to learn and implement the essential functions of a physical therapist. These skills include postural control, gross and fine motor skills, and the manual dexterity to perform PT examination and intervention procedures in a safe and effective manner. Motor demands include reasonable endurance, strength, and precision.
	B	Elicit information from patients by palpation, auscultation, percussion, and diagnostic maneuvers and procedures in a safe and effective manner without the use of an intermediary.
	C	Execute general motor movement such as transfer/transport and position disabled patients, physically restrain adults and children who lack motor control, perform gait training, and employ manual therapy techniques.
	D	Specifically, a candidate/student must be able to:
		1. Attend and participate in classes and clinical education for 40 hours or more per week during each academic semester. The typical day is 8 hours. Classes consist of a combination of lecture, discussion, laboratory, and clinical activities.
		2. Frequently sit and stand for 2 consecutive hours daily in the classroom and occasionally walk in the classroom.
		3. Constantly sit, stand, walk, and travel during clinical education.
		4. Occasionally lift weights of 50 pounds, frequently lift weights of 25 pounds and constantly lift weights of 10 pounds.
		5. Occasionally carry 25 pounds while walking 50 feet. Frequently carry 10 pounds while walking 50 feet.
		6. Occasionally exert 50 pounds of push/pull forces to objects for 50 feet and frequently exert 10 pounds of push/pull forces for 50 feet.
		7. Frequently twist, bend, stoop, and squat.
		8. Occasionally crawl, kneel, climb steps, and reach above shoulder level, climb stairs, and negotiate uneven terrain.
		9. Frequently move from place to place and position to position and must do so at a speed that permits safe handling of classmates and patients.
		10. Frequently stand and walk while providing support to a classmate simulating a disability or while supporting a patient with a disability.
		11. Frequently use their hands repetitively with a simple grasp and frequently with a firm grasp and manual dexterity skills.
		12. Frequently coordinate verbal and manual activities with gross motor activities.
	E	Perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation and emergency treatment to patients in a safe and effective manner.
	F	Be responsible for independent mobility on campus and at clinical education sites, including transportation to/from campus and clinical education sites.

Essential Function: IV		A candidate/student must be able to or must have:
Intellectual-Conceptualization	A	The intellectual capacity and ability to understand fundamental theory and to assimilate, within a reasonable time, large amounts of complex, technical, and detailed information.
	B	Read, write technically, measure, calculate, reason, analyze, integrate, evaluate and synthesis pertinent aspects of the patient’s history and examination in order to develop an effective treatment plan. A candidate/student must be able to perform the above problem-solving skills in a timely manner in order to provide effective patient care.
	C	Comprehend three-dimensional relationships and understand the spatial relationships of structures. Candidates/students must use these abilities to problem solve and think critically in order to independently make sound clinical judgments.
	D	The ability to use computers for searching, recording, storing, and retrieving information.
Essential Function: V		A candidate/student must be able to or must have:
Behavioral and Social Skills	A	Adequate mental and emotional health required for full utilization of his or her intellectual abilities, engaging in self-assessment, exercising good judgment, and functioning effectively during periods of high stress. A candidate/student must be able to display flexibility and learn to function in the face of uncertainties.
	B	Accept responsibility for professional behavior, complete all responsibilities promptly and interact maturely and sensitively with people of all ages, gender, races, socio-economic, religious, and cultural backgrounds. All students are responsible for understanding and complying with the Standards of Conduct defined by University of Toledo Health Science Campus (UT HSC) Policy No. 3364-25-01.
References: American Physical Therapy Association Web site. Available at: http://www.apta.org. Accessed September 1, 2010. O*NET/ERGOS Web site. Available at: http://online.onetcenter.org/link/summary/29-1123.00. Accessed September 1, 2010. US Dept of Labor Web site. Available at: http://www.bls.gov. Accessed September 1, 2010. University of Toledo, ‘Handbook for Physical Therapy Students’, Revised August 2010.

Doctor of Physical Therapy Program

Essential Functions of a Physical Therapy Student