The APTA House of Delegates recently released their new white paper the Physical Therapist Practice and the Human Movement System. In this paper they defined the “Human Movement System” as a unit of anatomical and physiological functions relating to the various parts within the body.
This paper better defines the body of knowledge that physical therapists’ (aka physiotherapists) possess to assess the movement system for locomotion and mobility across the lifespan. It discusses how physical therapists evaluate the system deriving a diagnosis and prognosis to establish a plan of care with goal directed outcomes based on individual needs. It also points out that physical therapists are experts at teaching individuals to function within their environment in terms of performance or function.
Physical therapy is an integrative profession. As practitioners, we are trained to evaluate all elements of the human movement system at all levels molecular, cellular, tissue, organ, and system with function as the primary goal. It’s a good read and a valuable statement for our profession.