Early Childhood Physical Therapists
Primary Mission:
To facilitate and optimize a child’s ability to develop and/or improve strong gross motor and balance skills needed for everyday interaction/independence in natural environments, and thus improve their quality of life.
Major Roles:
- Treatment, and management of infants/children with a variety of congenital, developmental, neuromuscular, skeletal, or acquired disorders/diseases.
- Improving gross and fine motor skills, balance and coordination, strength and endurance as well as cognitive and sensory processing/integration. Children with developmental delays, are a few of the patients treated by pediatric physical therapists.
- Assess for adaptive equipment (KidKart, wheelchair, bath chairs…)
- Educating, consulting, and counseling families, educators and other members of therapeutic team regarding acceptance/adaptation/accommodation, and management implications of children with physical disabilities
Collaborate, consult and treat when child exhibits:
- Poor range of motion
- Low muscle tone (hypotonia/floppy arms or legs)
- Need for orthotics/prosthetics
- Visual perceptual problems
- Poor self care/self help skills
- Decreased muscle strength/stability
- Decreased coordination skills
- Decreased endurance
- Difficulty motor planning
- Balance issues/clumsy gait
- Inability or poor weight bearing
- Characteristics or diagnosis of Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, Spina Bifida, Torticollis etc.
Do you love working with young children and families?