WebPT has released the results of its industry-wide survey of professionals in the rehab therapy industry. Completing and spending time on documentation topped the list of frustrations among respondents at both the individual and company level.

Among the other challenges and perceived threats facing the industry today, per the respondents, were declining reimbursements and constantly changing insurance and government regulations, according to a media release from WebPT.

WebPT distributed the survey to rehabilitation therapy professionals across a wide variety of settings, specialties, and geographic regions with the goal of obtaining an accurate snapshot of the demographics, trends, frustrations, and motivations shaping the industry as well as the future outlook and potential for success in the current environment.

More than 5,200 professionals in the rehab therapy industry, consisting largely of providers and executives, responded to the survey.

Other key findings from the survey, according to the release, are that the primary concerns among rehab therapy professionals are not being able to spend enough time with patients as well as issues related to insurance, billing, and compliance; and that although the market is adopting technology, 16% of respondents still document exclusively on paper, while 56.5% indicated they use an EMR or EHR exclusively.

In addition, fast and streamlined documentation was far and away the most important EMR/EHR feature among respondents (ranking at 91%), with outcomes-tracking the second-most important feature (ranking at 50%); and overall, the respondents’ top motivating factor for becoming a rehab therapy provider was the desire to pursue a career path that would allow them to help people.

“My mission as a therapist, industry advocate and technology innovator is to empower my peers in the rehab therapy industry to rise above challenges and realize their full potential as healers, care coordinators and change-makers,” says Heidi Jannenga, PT, DPT, ATC/L, president and co-founder of WebPT, in the release.

“This industry survey supports that mission by providing insight on the current and future needs of the rehab therapy community so we can continue to solve for them. It also brings these challenges to the forefront and will hopefully spark a dialogue within the community to drive collaboration and collective problem-solving,” she adds.

A detailed report compiled from the survey findings covers the following areas: labor, business and financials, industry outlook and technology. The report provides data on billing and reimbursements, revenue, company size, patient volume, common frustrations and motivations, top challenges, and technology system ratings and comparisons

To download the report, called “The State of Rehab Therapy in 2017,” visit WebPT.

[Source: WebPT]