Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 490-9-.02 - Principles of Conduct for Physical Therapists
Any individual who is licensed as a physical therapist shall abide by the following ethical standard:
(1) Act with consideration, within the scope
of physical therapy, for the rights and dignity of all individuals.
(a) The physical therapist shall hold as
confidential information obtained while acting in a professional
capacity.
(b) The physical
therapist shall provide optimal physical therapy care for all patients
regardless of patient race, gender, age, religion, disability or sexual
preference.
(c) The physical
therapist should balance considerations of the patient's physical,
psychological and socioeconomic welfare in professional decisions and actions
and document these considerations in the patient's record of care.
(d) The physical therapist shall communicate
and interact with patients and all persons encountered in a professional
capacity with courteous regard and timeliness.
(e) The physical therapist shall not engage
in any behavior that constitutes harassment or abuse of a patient, professional
colleague or associate.
(2) Comply with the laws and regulations
governing the practice of physical therapy in the State of Georgia.
(a) Physical therapists are to practice
(consultation, evaluations, treatment, research, education, administration and
preventive care) in accordance with the state practice act.
(3) Accept responsibility for the
exercise of sound judgment.
(a) When
implementing treatment, physical therapists shall assume the responsibility for
evaluating that individual; planning, implementing, and supervising the
therapeutic program; reevaluating and changing the program; and maintaining
adequate records of the case, including progress reports.
(b) When performing wellness and preventative
services, physical therapists shall assume responsibility for providing optimal
patient care.
(c) When the
individual's needs are beyond the scope of the physical therapist's expertise,
the physical therapist shall so inform and assist the individual in identifying
a qualified person to provide the necessary services.
(d) When the physical therapists judge that
benefit can no longer be obtained from their services, they shall so inform the
individual receiving the services. It is unethical to initiate or continue
services that, in the therapist's judgment, either cannot result in beneficial
outcome or are contraindicated.
(e)
The physical therapist's ability to make independent judgment must not be
limited or compromised by professional affiliations, including employment
relationships.
(f) Physical
therapists are not to delegate to a less qualified person any activity which
requires the unique skills, knowledge, and judgment of a physical
therapist.
(g) The primary
responsibility for physical therapy care assisted by supportive personnel rests
with the supervising physical therapist. Adequate supervision requires, at a
minimum, that a supervising physical therapist perform the following
activities:
1. Establish effective channels of
written and oral communication;
2.
Interpret and communicate critical information about the patient to the
supportive personnel;
3. Perform an
initial evaluation of the patient;
4. Develop a plan of care, including short
and long-term goals;
5. Delegate
appropriate tasks to supportive personnel;
6. Assess the supportive personnel's
competence to perform assigned tasks;
7. Provide supervision in accordance with the
law, the patient's condition, and the specific situation;
8. Identify and document precautions, special
programs, contraindications, goals, anticipated progress, and plans for
re-evaluation;
9. Re-evaluate the
patient, modify the plan of care when necessary, perform the final evaluation,
and establish a follow-up plan.
(h) Physical therapists are obligated to
advise their employer(s) of any practice which causes a physical therapist to
be in conflict with the ethical principles of this section. Physical therapists
are to attempt to rectify any aspect(s) of their employment which is in
conflict with the principles of this section.
(4) Seek remuneration for their services that
is deserved and reasonable.
(a) Fees for
physical therapy services should be reasonable for the service performed,
considering the setting in which it is provided, practice costs in the
geographic area, judgment of other organizations, and other relevant
factors.
(b) Physical therapists
shall not:
1. directly or indirectly request,
receive, or participate in the dividing, transferring, assigning, or rebating
of an unearned fee;
2. profit by
means of a credit or other valuable consideration, such as an unearned
commission, discount, or gratuity in connection with furnishing of physical
therapy services;
3. use influence
upon individuals, or families of individuals under their care for utilization
of any product or service based upon the direct or indirect financial interest
of the physical therapist.
(5) Provide accurate information to the
consumer about the profession and the services provided.
(a) Physical therapists are not to use, or
participate in the use of, any form of communication containing false,
plagiarized, fraudulent, misleading, deceptive, or unfair statements.
(6) Accept the responsibility to
protect the public and the profession from unethical, incompetent, or illegal
acts.
(a) Physical therapists shall report any
activity which appears to be unethical, incompetent, or illegal to the proper
authorities.
(b) Physical
therapists shall not participate in any arrangement in which patients are
exploited due to the referring sources enhancing their personal incomes as a
result of referring, prescribing, or recommending physical therapy or a
specific physical therapy practice.
(c) If a physical therapist is involved in an
arrangement with a referring source in which income is derived from the
services, the physical therapist has an obligation to disclose to the patient,
within the scope of the state law, the nature of the income.
Notes
State regulations are updated quarterly; we currently have two versions available. Below is a comparison between our most recent version and the prior quarterly release. More comparison features will be added as we have more versions to compare.
No prior version found.