Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physicians

Also called: Attending Physiatrist, Residency Program Director, Attending Physician, Doctor of Medicine/Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation PM&R Specialist, Interventional Pain Physician, Interventional Physiatrist

Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Physicians

Varies

estimated salary

Physical medicine and rehabilitation physicians diagnose and treat disorders requiring physiotherapy to provide physical, mental, and occupational rehabilitation.

 

 

  • Document examination results, treatment plans, and patients' outcomes.
  • Examine patients to assess mobility, strength, communication, or cognition.
  • Assess characteristics of patients' pain such as intensity, location, or duration using standardized clinical measures.
  • Provide inpatient or outpatient medical management of neuromuscular disorders, musculoskeletal trauma, acute and chronic pain, deformity or amputation, cardiac or pulmonary disease, or other disabling conditions.
  • Monitor effectiveness of pain management interventions such as medication or spinal injections.
  • Develop comprehensive plans for immediate and long-term rehabilitation including therapeutic exercise; speech and occupational therapy; counseling; cognitive retraining; patient, family or caregiver education; or community reintegration.
  • Coordinate physical medicine and rehabilitation services with other medical activities.
  • Perform electrodiagnosis including electromyography, nerve conduction studies, or somatosensory evoked potentials of neuromuscular disorders or damage.
  • Prescribe physical therapy to relax the muscles and improve strength.
  • Consult or coordinate with other rehabilitative professionals including physical and occupational therapists, rehabilitation nurses, speech pathologists, neuropsychologists, behavioral psychologists, social workers, or medical technicians.
  • Prescribe therapy services, such as electrotherapy, ultrasonography, heat or cold therapy, hydrotherapy, debridement, short-wave or microwave diathermy, and infrared or ultraviolet radiation, to enhance rehabilitation.
  • Instruct interns and residents in the diagnosis and treatment of temporary or permanent physically disabling conditions.
  • Diagnose or treat performance-related conditions such as sports injuries or repetitive motion injuries.
  • Prescribe orthotic and prosthetic applications and adaptive equipment, such as wheelchairs, bracing, or communication devices, to maximize patient function and self-sufficiency.
  • Conduct physical tests such as functional capacity evaluations to determine injured workers' capabilities to perform the physical demands of their jobs.
Work Context
  • Freedom to Make Decisions — 92% responded "A lot of freedom".
  • Structured versus Unstructured Work — 85% responded "A lot of freedom".
  • Work With Work Group or Team — 84% responded "Extremely important".
  • Face-to-Face Discussions — 90% responded "Every day".
  • Electronic Mail — 82% responded "Every day".
  • Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results — 81% responded "Very important results".
  • Importance of Being Exact or Accurate — 83% responded "Extremely important".
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Work Activities
  • Assisting and Caring for Others — Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
  • Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
  • Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
  • Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
  • Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
  • Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
  • Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
  • Processing Information — Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
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Detailed Work Activities
  • Train medical providers.
  • Examine patients to assess general physical condition.
  • Monitor patient progress or responses to treatments.
  • Examine patients to assess general physical condition.
  • Record patient medical histories.
  • Diagnose medical conditions.
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Knowledge

Medicine and Dentistry
  • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Psychology
  • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
Biology
  • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
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Skills

Critical Thinking
  • Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Reading Comprehension
  • Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Active Listening
  • Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking
  • Talking to others to convey information effectively.
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Abilities

Oral Expression
  • The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Inductive Reasoning
  • The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Deductive Reasoning
  • The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Problem Sensitivity
  • The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
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Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out.
They do well at jobs that need:
  • Achievement/Effort
  • Persistence
  • Initiative
  • Leadership
  • Cooperation
  • Concern for Others
  • Social Orientation
  • Self Control
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Technology

You might use software like this on the job:

Word processing software
  • Microsoft Word Hot Technology
Medical software
  • Allscripts PM
  • HealthFusion MediTouch
  • IOS Health Systems Medios EHR
  • Kareo Practice Management
  • McKesson Practice Plus
  • Modernizing Medicine Practice Management
  • NextGen Healthcare NextGen Practice Management
  • Nuesoft Technologies NueMD
  • OmniMD PT./OT EHR
  • simplifyMD
  • Vitera Healthcare Solutions Vitera Intergy
  • Greenway Medical Technologies PrimeSUITE
  • GE Healthcare Centricity Practice Solution
  • athenahealth athenaCollector
  • Automatic Data Processing AdvancedMD EHR
  • Benchmark Systems Benchmark Clinical EHR
  • Biodex Medical Systems Biodex Concussion Manager
  • Bizmatics PrognoCIS EMR
  • CareCloud Central
  • Cerner PowerWorks Practice Management
  • eClinicalWorks Practice Management
  • Epic Practice Management
  • GalacTek ECLIPSE
  • WRSHealth EMR
Electronic mail software
  • Email software

Education

Get started on your career:

Job Outlook

New job opportunities are less likely in the future.
Salary
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