Rehabilitation and Prosthetic Services
Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Services (PM&RS)
Physical Therapy (PT)
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides Physical Therapy services to Veterans and Service members. Physical Therapists (PTs) are health care professionals who diagnose and treat individuals of all ages with medical problems or other health-related conditions that limit their abilities to move and perform functional activities in their daily lives. PTs are further supported by Physical Therapist Assistants who are able to provide treatment based on a PT plan of care.
VA Physical Therapy - Site Navigation
• Physical Therapy Month
• Residency Programs
• Career VA Physical Therapist (PT)
VAs Physical Therapist(PT)/Physical Therapist Assistants(PTA)
Veteran Health Administration (VHA) Physical therapy provides state-of-the-art and evidence-based care to Veterans and Services members. Physical therapists examine each individual and develop a treatment plan. Evidence-based services are used to decrease disability, reduce pain, improve function and independence, prevent illness, promote wellness and restore quality of life to the Veterans and Servicemembers they serve. Physical Therapist Assistants (PTA) are able to carry out a physical therapy plan of care and provide treatment to Veterans and Servicemembers undergoing physical therapy.
PTs and PTAs practice across the continuum of care, providing services in inpatient settings (including medical centers and community living centers), home health, outpatient clinics, and tele-rehabilitation.
Physical Therapists are also key members of collaborative teams, which exist in the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) systems of care models (ie. Polytrauma, Spinal Cord Injury, Pain Management, and Amputee Systems of Care).
Services may include:
- Primary Care
- Emergency Department Care
- Pain Management
- Manual Intervention and Joint Mobilization
- Treatment of Musculoskeletal Disorders
- Strength and Conditioning/Therapeutic Exercise
- Treatment of Neurological Diseases and Stroke Recovery
- Balance Training/Fall Prevention
- Vestibular Rehabilitation
- Injury Prevention
- Weight Management Program for Veterans (MOVE!)
- Safe Patient Handling
- Wound Care
- Women’s Health
- Tele-Rehabilitation
- Adaptive mobility clinics
Key Highlights
- VA is one of the single largest employers of Physical Therapists, employing more than 3,100 Physical Therapists, and an additional 670 Physical Therapy Assistants.
- In 2023, Physical Therapists treated over 829,000 unique patients within VA, accounting for approximately 3.88 million total encounters.
- VA’s commitment to education resulted in establishment of physical therapy residency programs. To learn more: https://www.prosthetics.va.gov/PT/Residency_Programs.asp
- VA has the largest PT residency program in the country (public or private) and is scheduled to graduate 83 residents in academic year
Education
Physical therapists are licensed health care professionals. Qualification for licensure includes passing the National Physical Therapy Exam (NPTE), administered by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy. Another important qualification for licensure is graduation from a physical therapy education program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE) or a program that is deemed substantially equivalent to a CAPTE-accredited program. PTAs are also graduates of CAPTE accredited programs.
VA Central Office Rehabilitation and Prosthetic Services Physical Therapy Point of Contact:
Additonal Resources and Partners of the VHA Physical Therapists
- American Physical Therapy Association*
- Federal Physical Therapy Section*
- Veterans Health Library>Rehabilitation>Physical Therapy
- Physical Therapy Embedded Within VA Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT)
