Ethical issues in physical therapy.

Healthcare professionals can be confronted with a wide range of ethical and regulatory issues in today’s ever-changing practice environments. While achieving best practice standards, physical therapists may need to compromise what is best for patients due to fiscally driven rules, regulations, and limited benefits. Scenarios may surface where ethical issues and associated dilemmas become paramount between what is versus what should be. A challenge that should be in the forefront of professional endeavors is staying current with published rules, regulations, and conditions of participation, as applied to various practice models and environments while still adhering to ethical codes.

Knowing and utilizing available resources especially American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), websites, documents, and references can strengthen practice patterns and treatment options are integral to managing ethical issues within physical therapy practice.