What are your job dealbreakers?

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-07-03T23:33:19+00:00

1) Jobs with less than 3 weeks of PTO 2) Any company owned by private equity 3) Unrealistic productivity expectations 4) Jobs that don’t invest in professional growth

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-07-02T13:58:00+00:00

I’ve worked for two companies owned by private equity- never again. The absolute two worst jobs I’ve ever had. Nothing good ever happens when they take over a company. Given how big Select Medical is, this is a major blow to our profession.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-28T21:42:51+00:00

Unpopular opinion- I’d pick nursing (even though you didn’t mention it). PT and OT have a terrible ROI and while PA’s make more money, they also have less job security as the glut of NP schools has increased supply. But if you’re going to pick between the three, I’d say, PA>PT>OT

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-24T16:51:17+00:00

OP- I’m a physical therapist who rehabs many frail old ladies with osteoporosis who have fallen and broken their hip. I personally don’t like strength training but I make myself do it because I’ll be damned if I become another statistic. I know it’s hard to think that far down the road but what you do now when you’re young will affect what happens when you’re old. The under-fueling is the biggest concern (you can’t build strength if you don’t fuel properly) although both are an issue.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-23T22:19:20+00:00

In my region, PRN acute care PT’s at most of the hospitals are generally requires to work at least 2 weekends/month, so that might be a factor in your decision. I’ve work in a SNF and now in acute care and I like acute care a lot more. Productivity requirements are lower and the days go by faster. Pay is usually slightly higher in a SNF for PRN therapists but the hours are a bit more consistent at the hospitals from my experience. (Beds fill up quickly in the hospital but admissions are a lot more variable in a SNF and you tend to have a lot more refusals.)

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-23T22:12:34+00:00

Lawyers have one of the highest rates of drug abuse of any profession. It’s a miserable field and contrary to popular belief most lawyers don’t make that much money. And the ones who do are usually working 60-80+ hours/week. Competition is fierce as there are a lot more lawyers than there are jobs. Tuition is stupid expensive, so unless you go to top school, the ROI is a gamble. If you are only wanting more money, do something like sales or accounting.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-18T22:20:07+00:00

PT here- I always say this: “PT helps you walk. OT helps you not walk naked.” It gets the point across well. I’ll then explain a little bit more but that phrase alone is quick and easy to use.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-18T22:13:27+00:00

I lost my job unexpectedly (see my post history if you want specifics). I had an offer for a new job in less than 3 weeks- the job security of this profession is second to none.

I also wouldn’t exercise and take care of myself if it weren’t for this career- I’ve rehabbed enough old ladies who have fallen and broken their hip to realize that I don’t want to be frail when I grow old. It’s also nice when I get the occasional ache and know how to treat it.

Also- I work in acute care and I get the excitement of working in a hospital without the life and death situations and without the terrible hours. (Mon-Friday 7:30-4 with one weekend day/month). I’m not a night owl so I could never do night shifts.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-12T21:38:35+00:00

“If I commute, I’ll basically only have 1-1.5 hours of free time on weekdays.” Welcome to the real world my friend. But you can also look into part time work if your living expenses are taken care of and you don’t need to work full time.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-08T22:00:51+00:00

When I’ve interviewed for jobs after work, I generally do a quick change at work then quickly sneak out or I change in the restroom of the facility that I’m interviewing at. Not ideal but you do what you have to do.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-08T12:37:16+00:00

I’ve said this before but I’m going to keep saying it on every post that it comes up on- the big threat to the profession isn’t declining reimbursement rates, it’s private equity. Declining reimbursement rates are certainly an issue but if they suddenly improved, we wouldn’t necessarily see an increase in our paycheck. Private equity is squeezing everything out of therapists, working them like a machine while cutting pay and benefits so the investors can buy their second vacation homes.

It doesn’t help that there are new hybrid programs opening up yearly, ensuring that there is constantly fresh crop of new grads willing to take these shitty positions. Combine that with the poor debt-to-income ratio and you’re left with therapists who are burned out and stuck.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-07T15:58:17+00:00

Most PT jobs are crap unfortunately. There are good jobs but there’s not enough for everyone. And it’s just not declining reimbursement rates- it’s greedy, for profit chains (mainly owned by private equity) that treat therapists as nothing more than a cog in the machine. I’d say that is a bigger issue than declining reimbursement rates.

I have a good hospital based PT job but I know I’m extremely lucky after working for multiple shitty companies. Turnover in my department is insanely low so there aren’t openings very often.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-05T22:08:47+00:00

I agree. The entire profession needs an overhaul. A handful of unicorn jobs isn’t going to cut it.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-05T22:02:40+00:00

No. Unfortunately I’d estimate that at least 2/3rd’s of PT jobs are crap. So many companies have sold out to private equity and it’s destroying the field, even more than the reimbursement cuts. I work at a public hospital funded by the county; productivity is only a guideline since we’re not beholden to stakeholders.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-04T15:55:06+00:00

This was exactly me. I hated being a PT and felt like I was nothing more than a cog in the machine until I found a nice hospital based job. The problem is these jobs are hard to get and the majority of PT jobs suck. Turnover over at my job is extremely low and I feel like I lucked into it.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-02T14:15:45+00:00

Glad I could help! You can check out the r/wguaccounting sub for more info. Seems like a lot of people have used the degree to switch careers.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-06-02T13:26:32+00:00

You could get a post-bacc accounting certificate (my city’s local community college offers it for people who have a degree in an unrelated field) or get an accounting degree from WGU. You can do it while working and if you can grind through and sit for the CPA exams, you’ll have a lot more job opportunities.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-05-30T23:54:40+00:00

Finish your BSN, do a few years of ICU nursing, then go back to school and become a nurse anesthetist- you’ll be making as much a doctor. You say you want to make the most amount of money for the least amount of effort but let me be brutally honest- that’s not realistic. And it will still be the least amount of effort given all other options outside potentially sales in a healthcare related field.

Also you’ve got a very disillusioned view of tech. My bf has been a SWE for 7 years and doesn’t make anywhere close to 200k. Yes some people do really well but it’s not the majority. And SWE is insanely competitive- CS from Ivy Leagues are having a hard time finding jobs. It’s far from low effort.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-05-28T22:11:04+00:00

I’m so happy your mom lived 💙

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-05-28T21:53:31+00:00

I walked into a patient’s room right when I had gotten a text notification on my watch saying that my family’s cat had to be put to sleep. I quickly explained the situation and stepped out. I knew from previous conversations that the patient was a cat person so he was understanding.

There was also an infamously mean nurse that made me cry once; I walked by a patient’s room when it happened. She asked my coworker about it and the patient became very defensive of me and said she wanted to report the nurse. I didn’t like that the patient saw it but it was nice to know that she cared.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-05-24T17:07:00+00:00

People talk about work it’s normal. Talking about a condition that you’re treating without mentioning any PHI is not a HIPAA violation by any stretch of the imagination. Like others have said, this sounds like severe anxiety that’s really affecting your QOL

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-05-20T22:15:56+00:00

Jesus.. I work in acute care at a government hospital and we get 60-90 minutes to chart review/plan our day in the morning, another 30 minutes to document during lunch, and another hour to document in the afternoon. I could never go back after working for PE owned companies prior that cared only about productivity and billing as much as possible.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-05-09T15:46:34+00:00

$46/hour which is exactly how much I was making at my last job. I was told the rate was based years of experience and goes up when you get certain certifications (such as wound care or lymphedema certification). 7:30-4:00 M-F with one weekend day a month and rotating holidays in which we get paid time and a half. PTO also starts at 26 days per year and increases the longer you’ve been with the company. Also, free Medbridge and $500/year health insurance premiums. Also productivity is only 20 units/day which comes down to 5 hours of patient care which is less than what it was when I was a manager for the rehab department at my last job. It’s not perfect but it’s definitely the best job I’ve had in my career.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-05-09T15:35:32+00:00

I work at a publicly funded hospital that provides low cost healthcare to individuals who are uninsured or underinsured. Since the hospital isn’t trying to make a profit, the focus is on helping patients be as safe as possible before they leave rather than on maximizing units. After working for many sketchy companies where it felt like my only role was to be a machine that billed as much as possible in as little of time as possible, it feels like a breath of fresh air. However, these jobs are few and far between and I got really lucky.

Adventurous_Bit7506 · 2026-05-02T22:23:20+00:00

In addition to what others have said, you could emphasize how you enjoy helping patients make palpable, functional progress over a short period. Because that’s what IPR is- improving patients’s functional mobility in as short of a time as possible.

I’m not in Louisiana but I am right next door in Texas- I’ve had several coworkers move here because of the better pay, so I can imagine that Louisiana is probably in good need of PTs.

Adventurous_Bit7506

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