So What If Everyone Is Doing it?
Preview: CSM 2009
As ADVANCE's editor, I get some interesting correspondences, either over the phone or through the mail. A PT or PTA notifies me about something going on in his state or within his own practice setting that is either unethical or illegal; would I be interested in doing a story to expose such practices? Often I am caught between a rock and a hard place-sure, the story has great legs, but the source almost always doesn't want to reveal himself and go on the record about what is happening. Thus, exposing unethical PT business practices is often difficult, not only for those of us who cover the profession but also for those who matter most-the therapists caught in the situation.
How to recognize current practices that are unethical or downright illegal can be harder than practitioners think. Basic ethics courses can teach students the laws and regulations about how to operate as a PT or PTA in his or her state under the governing rules. But some practices might circumvent the rules, or apply shady or sometimes purposefully unclear practices that they compel their employees to follow, often unwittingly.
So how can therapists, especially newer ones, know when they are on the wrong side of practice ethics? A session at APTA's Combined Sections Meeting this year will aim to identify current practices that are unethical and/or illegal, and yet are sometimes used by practices on a regular basis. The session, titled "But Everyone is Doing it! Is Ethics Education Preparing Practitioners to Cope With Commonly Accepted, but Unethical, Contemporary Practices in Physical Therapy?" held February 12 at CSM in Las Vegas, will discuss why these dubious practices are often attractive to clinicians, the inconsistencies that exist between the laws governing the profession and common practice mores, and how to improve enforcement of the laws to better benefit the profession so clinicians aren't tempted to turn to unethical methods to gain success in business.
The session will cover unethical practices such as referral-for-profit arrangements, using unlicensed personnel to perform therapy, failing to supervise PTAs, practicing outside the scope of practice, improper use of "productivity bonuses," failing to provide services because of lack of necessary resources and more.
Given the current weak economy and always up against demands to show profitability, clinic managers, private practice owners and even rank-and-file PT staffers could inevitably get sucked into arrangements that seem innocent on the face but are often highly unethical and threatening to both their own jobs and the profession itself. The APTA session will likely address how to best train new PTs and PTAs on how to recognize possible unethical situations and not get trapped into them. This course sounds both interesting and very necessary. We'd be interested to hear if PTs and PTAs out there feel unethical practices are on the rise, and what the APTA should be addressing with regard to ethics enforcement.