The state of the PT industry is far from ideal. Medicare’s recent payment reductions—both the across-the-board 8% cut and the decrease in reimbursements for PTA-provided services—will require physical therapists to change the way we operate if we want to thrive in this next decade. But payer contracts and government regulations aren’t all we’re up against; we also have a massive branding problem—which is a huge component of the so-called “90% problem”—staring us in the face, as the majority of our patients and referring providers still don’t understand who we are, what we do, and how we provide value across the entire care continuum. With all of that weighing on our shoulders, looking ahead at the next ten years can be daunting. After all, these problems don’t have easy solutions. But, that doesn’t mean they are insurmountable.

We absolutely must persevere—for our patients, our teams, and ourselves.

I am a whole-hearted believer in the power of PT. I mean, our patients’ stories truly say at all. And the data is there to support those stories, objectively demonstrating that first-line physical therapy intervention is a safer, more effective, and more cost-efficient treatment path compared to traditional routes like surgery and prescription painkillers. Thus, we absolutely must persevere—for our patients, our teams, and ourselves. But in order to do that, we must care deeply enough about our profession—as I know you all do—to participate in data collection efforts. That’s why I’m really excited to announce that the fourth-annual State of Rehab Therapy survey is in full swing. This survey is a huge opportunity for any rehab therapist—or really any individual who works in the PT, OT, and SLP spaces—to move this incredible industry forward. But, the survey closes on Friday, February 28, so you only have a few days left to participate.

The 2020 State of Rehab Therapy Survey will help us collect the actionable data we need to make meaningful improvements to our profession.

While this survey isn’t the be-all, end-all solution to our problems, it’s a step in the right direction, because it’ll enable us to collect meaningful and actionable data about our profession that we can collectively use to make things better. Plus, it’s something accessible and tangible that each one of us can actually, realistically do—and it literally takes 10 minutes. Last year, we collected more than 6,000 responses across the rehab therapy community, and we used that data to produce one of the industry’s largest, most comprehensive reports on the challenges, opportunities, and performance drivers affecting rehab therapy professionals and their organizations. (If you haven’t checked it out yet, you can do so here.)

This year, we’re focusing on auxiliary services, marketing, burnout, PT education, MIPS, telehealth, payment cuts, and advocacy.

The 2019 report—along with its 2018 and 2017 predecessors—has made some major waves in the rehab therapy community, driving meaningful conversation and action on issues like therapist burnout, the gender pay gap, the student debt crisis, and the lack of diversity in rehab therapy. But, there’s so much more information we can glean—and action we can take—to continue improving the environment we, and our future colleagues, practice in. This year, we’re honing in on auxiliary services, marketing, burnout, PT education, the Merit-Based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), telehealth, payment cuts, and advocacy. I know all of these themes are super-relevant to rehab therapy providers right now—and we’ll use our findings to continue providing the entire industry with the always-free content you need to strategize and prioritize accordingly.

Here are 10 reasons to spend 10 minutes taking this survey today.

For those of you who—like me—love lists, here are 10 reasons to spend 10 minutes taking the State of Rehab Therapy Survey:

1. Because you care about this profession. As I mentioned before, I have yet to meet a PT in practice—especially in today’s healthcare climate—who doesn’t deeply care about this profession or his or her patients. So, why not spend 10 minutes sharing your experiences in practice to make this profession better for you—and them?
2. Because every PT counts, and the more data we collect from the most diverse group of PTs possible, the more applicable and actionable this data will be for you—and the wider community.
3. Because you’ll get early access to the report, which you can use to make meaningful changes to your career as well as your practice. These reports are chock-full of super-valuable information that’ll help you better understand the industry at large as well as your role in it. Trust me when I say that the report is even better when you know you were a part of it.
4. Because a great, robust survey means great educational content for at least the next year—content designed to help you make improvements in the areas that are the most important to you.
5. Because having informed strategies for things like auxiliary services, marketing, burnout, PT education, MIPS, telehealth, payment cuts, and advocacy is absolutely essential to our individual and collective success this year—and this decade.
6. Because we received more than 6,000 responses last year, and we’re on a mission to top that this year. Don’t you want to help shape one of the industry’s largest, most comprehensive resources on the challenges, opportunities, and performance drivers affecting rehab therapy professionals and their organizations?
7. Because doing nothing will propagate the status quo, and we’ve had enough of that, wouldn’t you say?
8. Because your voice matters, and I want to understand your take, your perspective, and your experience in this industry.
9. Because it’ll only take 10 minutes—max. And what else can you do in 10 minutes that has the potential to massively impact your entire industry?
10. Because you’ll be entered in a prize drawing for one of 50 Amazon gift cards worth $100 each or one of four 2020 Ascend Business Summit tickets valued at $799 apiece.

So, make sure you take the survey; then, share it with your network.

If you’ve got 10 minutes to take the survey, I’m guessing you have one more to share it with your friends and colleagues. So please, help us get the word out so we can make the 2020 State of Rehab Therapy survey our most impactful to date. Here are a few social media messages and an email intro that you can use to share the survey link with your network:

Social Posts

I just took WebPT’s State of Rehab Therapy survey to share my expertise and help move our profession forward. Can I count on you to take the survey, too? The more PT, OT, and SLP professionals who participate, the better data we’ll all have to make meaningful change. Plus, it only takes 10 minutes: webpt.com/survey

Want to be part of the rehab therapy community’s largest, most impactful data-collection endeavor? Have 10 minutes to spare before Friday, February 28? Then please take the 2020 State of Rehab Therapy industry survey—and be sure to share it with your own network, too. Here’s the link: webpt.com/survey

Have 10 minutes to spare? Use this link to share your expertise and help move the rehab therapy profession forward. I just did and it was easy-peasy. Take the State of the Rehab Therapy survey before it closes on February 28: webpt.com/survey

Have you participated in The State of Rehab Therapy survey yet? It’s closing soon—which means you only have a few more days to share your expertise and help move our profession forward. After all, data talks. Plus, it only takes about 10 minutes: webpt.com/survey

Email

Hi {Name},

Did you see that the fourth-annual State of Rehab Therapy survey is now live? This year’s questions hone in on auxiliary services, marketing, burnout, PT education, MIPS, telehealth, payment cuts, and advocacy—all things I think are truly important for us to get a pulse on if we want to ensure our success in 2020 and beyond.

I just completed the survey, and it only took 10 minutes. If you can, I’d love for you to take it, too. But, you have to hurry; the survey closes February 28. Here’s the link. The more of us who participate, the better (and more actionable) the data will be.

_____________

It’s no secret that there’s a lot of room for improvement in the rehab therapy industry. Completing the State of Rehab Therapy survey is an easy way for each of us to do our part to move our profession in the right direction. Thank you in advance for taking the time to share your experience with us and your fellow PTs.