From Overwhelmed to Ortho: Finding My Place in Outpatient as a Travel PT

As a new grad, I entered my first full-time job completely unprepared—in retrospect, I don’t even think I had an orientation or a single module to complete. It was exactly what they warned us about in school: a facility taking advantage of a new grad who didn’t know any better. I was handed a schedule, given a three-minute tour, and told to go for it. I was freaked out. I looked at my schedule—with five evals, several treatments, and progress notes—thinking about the giant mistake I had made. I didn’t last long in that role, but it did prepare me for the travel world. This is the story I tell to all my would-be managers who assure me they have a ramp-up and they “would never do that” to me. Sure, Jan. That’s what they all say!

But, fellow travelers, I just want you to know that there *are* some amazing contracts out there—ones in systems that support us, encourage growth, acknowledge opportunities for improvement, and don’t make you feel like you need to be up and running on day one. And I am super lucky to have found this in a setting I’ve never worked in before.

Outpatient has been the hurdle I could not face. I dreaded being stuck in a mill, expected to use ultrasound and beg people to do their home exercise programs. When I interviewed for the position, I was pleasantly surprised to hear the manager speak so highly of her staff and sound genuinely excited that I wanted to learn new things. She wasn’t the type of manager just looking for a warm body, and I could tell my inexperience led to a little hesitation on her part. Ultimately, she took a chance on me—which opened me up to a world I didn’t think I fit into just a few months ago.

Every day, I’m faced with something that feels unfamiliar. Even straightforward cases have individualized nuances, and keeping up with the caseload requires me to quickly jot down exercise progressions and patient questions when inspiration strikes (i.e., in the car, at the gym, or the grocery store). Things are coming back to me from classes I haven’t sat in for years—but not always as easily as I’d hope. This means I need a focused study session every week where, for the hour prior, I internally panic: “How am I going to learn everything about everything in one day?!”

But it’s in these study sessions I’m reminded that I don’t have to know how to do everything, treat everyone, or “fix” everything. My goal for this contract is to become a better therapist—to feel prepared and confident when faced with unique situations. Before starting the contract, I also took the Institute of Clinical Excellence’s Extremity Management Course, which helped me get into the ortho-therapist mindset and gave me a simplified framework for developing a plan of care. I would highly recommend it, even if you're a confident clinician. AND I’m stoked to have an awesome supervising therapist who dedicates her time to my growth—I could not feel more supported right now.

All of this is not to say I haven’t had a great first month. Hearing that people are feeling better, moving better, and are happy to come into the clinic is music to my ears. I feel like I am absolutely in the right place right now. As it turns out, outpatient ortho might be exactly the kind of challenge & change I needed.