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Thursday, August 7, 2008

Physical Therapy Jobs Among Healthcare's Most Wanted

BOCA RATON, FL--(Marketwire - August 5, 2008) - With Money Magazine ranking physical therapy jobs (PT jobs) number 12 on their list of "Best Jobs in America" and Parade reporting PT jobs as among the six "Hottest Jobs for College Graduates," it's clear that physical therapy is one of the fastest growing occupations in healthcare. The reasons are many, say industry execs, with job satisfaction and high pay topping the list.

"The median salary for a staff physical therapy job is about $66,000," said Mary Kay Hull, recruitment VP for American Traveler. "But earnings for travel PT jobs can be as high as $100,000, and include free private housing and free first day health insurance."

A need projected to grow by 27 percent over the next five years according to the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), Physical Therapy is a fast expanding practice, with sub-specialties branching out into sports medicine, geriatrics and pediatrics, orthopedics, neurology and cardiopulmonary physical therapy.

"Aging Baby Boomers with the need for rehabilitation from heart attack and stroke will continue to fuel the need for physical therapy travel jobs as will advanced medical technologies aimed at improving quality of life for newborns and the elderly," said 50 States Staffing Clinical Credentialing Manager, Deb Bacurin, RN.

Also throwing wood on the proverbial PT job fire are government mandates, such as the lifting of Medicare therapy caps and the classifying of the PT occupation as an "area of national need," a status by which Physical Therapists can apply for student loan forgiveness.

"Physical therapy travel jobs in California, Florida and Arizona have upshot," said marketing director Denis Urbanski at American Traveler, adding that PT job salaries have increased by as much as 17 percent.

Two decades of bad ergonomics sitting at computers at work and at home has resulted in an endless stream of clients in need of Physical Therapy treatment for neck and back pain. Medical advancements in the area of trauma will lead to therapy for survivors and the treatment of disabling conditions once untreatable in the past. PTs are needed to help babies with birth defects survive and are vital to the livelihood of the elderly.

"Physical therapy travel jobs are hot right now and will be for some time," said Urbanski. "High demand states such as California, Illinois, Virginia, Maryland and North Carolina have posted thousands of physical therapy jobs, all with high pay and at top-ranked facilities focused on positive outcomes."

For more information regarding physical therapy travel jobs with American Traveler call 800-884-8788 or apply online today.

About American Traveler:

From world-renowned university teaching hospitals to rural medical facilities, The Joint Commission certified American Traveler specializes in short-term, per diem, and permanent positions for RNs, Physical Therapists, RTs, STs, and other allied health professionals.

http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/American-Traveler-886063.html

House Panel Approves Bill to Provide More Foreign Physical Therapists

Yesterday, the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law approved legislation that would raise the cap on employment-based visas for qualified, foreign educated registered nurses and physical therapists by 20,000. The legislation, H.R. 5924, was introduced by Representatives Robert Wexler (D-FL) and James Sensenbrenner (R-WI) in response to the nation’s persistent nursing shortage.

Specifically, The Emergency Nurse Supply Relief Act addresses the unavailability of employment-based visas (EB-3 visas) for nurses by providing a three-year exemption from the current employment-based visa cap. It loosens that cap, replacing it with a separate annual cap of 20,000 registered nurses (RNs) and physician assistants (PTs), allowing for 60,000 RNs and PTs to come to the United States over the next three years.

The legislation would also authorize a grant program for nursing schools aimed at increasing the number of domestically trained nurses and for current nurses who wish to pursue a graduate degree in nursing.

The full committee is expected to take up the HANYS-supported legislation in September. - Susan Van Meter

http://www.hanys.org/news/index.cfm?storyid=466