We, the undersigned, are concerned about the future of the profession of physical therapy. We are concerned that the public is not aware of the scope of expertise we can provide. We are concerned that they are making decisions on their healthcare without all the necessary information. We are concerned that patients are seeking care from other professions based solely on the marketing provided, and not on the best available evidence. The current and future healthcare environment demands evidence based medicine. Current best scientific evidence supports physical therapy as a first line treatment for many neuromusculoskeletal conditions.
We are imploring that the American Physical Therapy Association initiate a national marketing campaign that focuses on educating the public on the conditions that physical therapists are trained to evaluate and treat (i.e. low back pain, neck pain, and osteoarthritis). Conservative management of neuromusculoskeletal conditions by physical therapists is supported by the evidence, effective for many conditions, and carries virtually no risk for harm. Unfortunately, it is also nearly completely unknown to the general public. We strongly recommend that a greater percentage of our membership dues go directly to marketing our services to the U.S. consumer.