9781422276655

skills, such as grasping a fork, tying shoes, and picking up coins. If the patient is too injured or disabled to walk to the treatment room unas- sisted, you may need to help him or her get there. You may, for example, lift a patient from a bed, provide as- sistance in the bathroom, or trans- port a patient in a wheelchair to the treatment room. A physical therapist aide per- forms many of the same duties as an occupational therapist aide, only physical therapy tends to focus on

TALKING MONEY Occupational therapist aides make a median annual salary of

$28,330 with the top 10 percent making more than $51,180 a year, according to 2016 statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Physi- cal therapist aides make a median annual sal- ary of $25,680 with the top 10 percent making more than $38,340 per year. Those who advance to become therapy assistants earn significantly more—an average of $56,610 per year, accord- ing to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

p  A physical therapy aide assists a patient with gait therapy using parallel bars.

Occupational Therapist Aide/Physical Therapist Aide  • 15

Made with FlippingBook HTML5