This blog summarizes the article “Underused Physical Therapy Services in Primary Care Settings,” which argues that PT remains underutilized despite rising rehab needs from aging, chronic disease, and injury. It explains how physical therapists’ movement‑system expertise fits primary care, what system‑level barriers keep PT underused, and practical steps clinics can take to integrate PT earlier in care pathways to boost quality and value.
Why this matters
The article “Underused Physical Therapy Services in Primary Care Settings” argues that primary care clinics are leaving a lot of value on the table by not fully using physical therapists for patients with movement‑related and functional problems. As populations age and noncommunicable diseases grow, demand for rehab is rising, yet PT is still treated mainly as a downstream referral instead of a front‑line resource in primary care.
Key insights from the report
- Big rehab need, underused PT: Longer life expectancy, chronic diseases, and injuries mean more people need rehabilitation, but physical therapy remains underutilized in primary care workflows.
- PT scope is broader than most clinics realize: The paper highlights the PT “movement system” skill set—screening, examination, diagnosis, prognosis, intervention, prevention, and care coordination—as a strong fit for primary care, not just post‑surgical rehab.
- Primary care PT improves quality and value: When PTs are used earlier and more intentionally, they can reduce unnecessary imaging and medications, support self‑management, and address function as part of chronic disease management, improving quality of life and overall value of care.
- Barriers are mostly system‑level, not capability‑level: The authors emphasize that PT underuse stems from referral habits, limited role awareness, and structural barriers, not from a lack of PT competence for primary care–oriented roles.
What clinicians and clinic owners can do
- Reframe when PT enters the pathway
Instead of defaulting to “PT after everything else,” build triggers in your primary care EHR and triage scripts that route appropriate musculoskeletal and functional problems to PT earlier. This aligns PT involvement with screening, early intervention, and secondary prevention rather than only late‑stage rehab. - Clarify PT roles for your team
Educate physicians, NPs/PAs, nurses, and care coordinators on what PTs can do in primary care: movement‑system screening, contributing to differential diagnosis, designing activity plans for chronic disease, and supporting function‑focused care plans. Clear role descriptions reduce default “medical only” management for issues where PT could lead. - Bake PT into chronic disease management
The article stresses that PTs can add value beyond musculoskeletal pain—for example, in cardiovascular, pulmonary, cancer, and metabolic conditions where mobility and function drive outcomes. Integrating PT into chronic care pathways (e.g., for diabetes or heart failure) makes rehab part of routine primary care instead of an add‑on. - Align workflows and incentives
To move from “underused” to “integrated,” clinics need appointment types, referral orders, and billing processes that make PT easy to access from primary care visits. The paper encourages leaders to examine scheduling, documentation, and payer rules that unintentionally keep PT on the sidelines.
What patients should know
If you are seeing your primary care provider for pain, stiffness, balance issues, or difficulty doing daily activities, physical therapy may be one of the most effective and safest options—but it is often not offered early enough. Asking, “Would a physical therapist help with this?” can prompt your care team to bring PT into your plan sooner.
Policy and practice implications
The authors call on health systems and policymakers to treat PT as a core primary care resource for movement and function, not just a downstream referral service. That means supporting integrated models, modernizing payment and referral policies, and embedding PT in team‑based primary care to meet growing rehabilitation needs more efficiently.
Call to Action
For primary care leaders, this paper is a prompt to audit how, when, and how often your teams actually use PT for movement and functional problems—and to redesign pathways so PT is used at the right time, not just as a late‑stage option.
Read the Full Report
Read the full article: “Underused Physical Therapy Services in Primary Care Settings” on ScienceDirect https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1555415522003221
Join 500+ clinics using SPRY to save time, increase revenue, and provide better patient care.
Book a DemoReduce costs and improve your reimbursement rate with a modern, all-in-one clinic management software.
Get a DemoLegal Disclosure:- Comparative information presented reflects our records as of Nov 2025. Product features, pricing, and availability for both our products and competitors' offerings may change over time. Statements about competitors are based on publicly available information, market research, and customer feedback; supporting documentation and sources are available upon request. Performance metrics and customer outcomes represent reported experiences that may vary based on facility configuration, existing workflows, staff adoption, and payer mix. We recommend conducting your own due diligence and verifying current features, pricing, and capabilities directly with each vendor when making software evaluation decisions. This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or business advice.
.svg){kind=small}
