Research Report

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Administration and Management
Skills Needed by Physical Therapist
Graduates in 2010: A National Survey
D Sue Schafer, Rosalie B Lopopolo, Kathleen A Luedtke-Hoffmann
DS Schafer, PT, PhD, is Professor
and Associate Director, School of
Background and Purpose Physical Therapy, Texas Woman’s
Administration and management (A&M) skills are essential to physical therapist University, Dallas, TX 75235 (USA).
practice. This study identified which A&M skills will be most critical for future Doctor Address all correspondence to Dr
of Physical Therapy (DPT) graduates to possess upon entry into clinical practice. Schafer at: sschafer@twu.edu.

RB Lopopolo, PT, PhD, MBA, is

Subjects and Methods Professor, Department of Physical
Therapy, Arcadia University, Glen-
Using a 7-point scale, 435 randomly selected American Physical Therapy Association side, Pa.
members (physical therapists) rated 121 A&M skills based on expectation of the level
of independence required by a new DPT graduate. KA Luedtke-Hoffmann, PT, PhD,
MBA, is Assistant Professor, School
of Physical Therapy, Texas Wom-
Results an’s University, Dallas, Tex.
No differences among respondents based on role, work setting, or experience were [Schafer DS, Lopopolo RB,
found, so the data were combined for factor analyses, producing 16 A&M skill groups. Luedtke-Hoffmann KA. Adminis-
The most independence was expected in skills related to self-management, compli- tration and management skills
ance with rules, ethical behavior, and insurance coding. Skills requiring the most needed by physical therapist grad-
assistance were marketing and strategic planning, financial analysis and budgeting, uates in 2010: a national survey.
Phys Ther. 2007;87:261–281.]
and environmental assessment.
© 2007 American Physical Therapy
Discussion and Conclusion Association

This study has identified the level of independence for the A&M skills needed by new
DPT graduates, provided empirical evidence suggesting which A&M skills should be
included in DPT curricula, and suggested a pattern of A&M skill acquisition that
applies first to the new therapist and the patient, then to the organization, and finally
to the health care environment.

March 2007 Volume 87 Number 3 Physical Therapy f 261

Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010
I
n today’s health care environment,
it is difficult for any clinician to
manage the care of patients or cli-
ents without considering their re-
sources, the reimbursement that may
be received for the services provided,
and a myriad of factors related to the
organization and operation of his or
her clinical practice. Therefore, we
believe that leadership, administra-
tion, management, and professional-
ism (LAMP) skills are integral to the
clinical practice of physical therapy.
The original LAMP1 conceptualiza-
tion, with its 4 elements symboliz-
ing independent business or practice
management functions, did not em-
phasize the integration of clinical
practice with practice management.
However, as we examined the na-
ture of LAMP skills1 and studied the
relationship of LAMP to the Ameri-
can Physical Therapy Association’s
(APTA’s) Vision 2020,2 it became
clear that the concepts of leader-
ship, administration, management,
and professionalism were not only
interdependent with one another,
but also were interrelated with the
elements of the patient/client model
from the Guide to Physical Thera-
pist Practice (Guide)3 and included
many of the generic abilities de-
scribed by May et al.4 Thus, we felt
that a revised conceptualization of
the LAMP acronym was needed to
depict these relationships and fur-
ther research in this area.
In the revised conceptualization
(Fig. 1),5 professionalism provides
the contextual background for all
physical therapist practice, while the
administration and management
(A&M) skills that depict the business
side of physical therapist practice,
together with the Guide’s3 patent/
client management skills, provide
the content necessary for optimal
physical therapist practice. Finally,
leadership is the means through
which the content of practice is pro-
fessionally applied to the problems
262 f Physical Therapy Volume 87
facing the physical therapist. Leader-
ship can take many forms and repre-
sents the roles that therapists assume
to fulfill their professional respon-
sibilities in their chosen practice
arenas.5
If, as we propose, LAMP skills are
important to clinical practice, then
we need a clearer understanding
of which of these skills are appro-
priate to include in professional
physical therapist education pro-
grams and which are better left for
development at a later stage in the
therapist’s career. The APTA’s Nor-
mative Model, which guides physical
therapist curriculum content, lists 5
categories of A&M content expected
of new graduates: direction and su-
pervision of human resources, par-
ticipation in financial management,
establishment of a business plan,
participation in marketing and pub-
lic relations, and use of other busi-
ness strategies in physical therapist
management.6(pp70 –71) However, the
Normative Model does not articu-
late which specific skills or groups
of skills are most critical for newly
graduated physical therapists to
have upon entry into clinical prac-
tice, nor does it indicate the level
of skill or knowledge that should
be required. Furthermore, it is not
known whether these 5 suggested
content areas are the most appropri-
ate areas that need to be addressed
by physical therapist educators.
In 2004, Lopopolo et al7 laid the
groundwork for identifying the admin-
istration and management content
that should be included in professional
physical therapist curricula. Their re-
search produced an extensive list of
A&M behaviors that was organized ac-
cording to a Guide-based framework
of business management suggested by
the Leadership, Administration, and
Management Preparation (LAMP) doc-
ument.1 Although Lopopolo and col-
leagues’ list of behaviors appeared to
be exhaustive, the authors suggested
Number 3
that using this organizing framework
“may have . . . affected the clarity and
relationship of the components [be-
haviors] within the elements [catego-
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ries] and may have influenced the re-
spondents’ ratings.”7(p147) Because of
these shortcomings, a new framework
for organizing A&M skills was needed
to advance this line of research.
In other disciplines, the framework
for administrative and management
content been historically been orga-
nized by functions performed3,8 –11
or roles assumed by managers.12–14
Recently, Luedtke-Hoffmann15 cre-
ated a 6-category model of A&M con-
tent derived from an extensive re-
view of business and health care
management literature and tested it
using an expert group of physical
therapist managers. The categories
in this model were: planning and
forecasting, managing subordinates,
managing operations, building net-
works, managing information, and
managing resources.
The results from her research sug-
gest that management tasks in phys-
ical therapy are similar to and fall
into the same general categories as
found for all managers, regardless of
industry. The findings also suggest
that this 6-category model is an ap-
propriate organizing framework for
the administrative and management
work of physical therapists. Prelimi-
nary sorting of Lopopolo and col-
leagues’ list of A&M behaviors7 using
Luedtke-Hoffmann’s findings15 sug-
gests the following 6-category A&M
model: finance, information manage-
ment, networking, human resource
management, operations, and plan-
ning and forecasting (FINHOP).5
Using the FINHOP model, we sought
to determine which administration
and management skills will be needed
by newly graduated physical thera-
pists in the year 2010. The year 2010
was selected to capture changes in the
A&M skill set needed in clinical prac-
March 2007

Figure 1.
Conceptualization of Leadership, Administration, Management, and Professionalism
(LAMP) model integrated with patient/client management model.
tice as the profession moves toward
APTA’s Vision 2020,2 when all entry-
level (professional) physical therapists
are projected to be prepared at the
doctoral level. This date also was se-
lected to provide the survey partici-
pants with a more realistic time frame
(5 years out) when thinking about the
needs of therapists in future clinical
practice as compared with 2020 (15
years out). Because we were inter-
ested in the views of a cross-section of
physical therapists and because previ-
ous research suggested that opinions
of physical therapists regarding A&M
content might differ based on work
setting16 or primary role (clinician ver-
sus manager),17 we first needed to be
sure that the responses from our sam-
ple of participants were representative
regardless of work setting or role.
March 2007
Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010
Therefore, we tested the following
hypotheses:
(1) There is no difference between
clinicians and managers on the
average scores of any of the 6
FINHOP categories.
(2) There is no difference among
the 4 practice settings on the
average scores of any of the 6
FINHOP categories.
(3) There is no interaction between
roles and practice settings on the
average scores of any of the 6
FINHOP categories.
If no differences were found, we
could combine all responses to ad-
dress the primary research question:
Volume 87
Which administration and manage-
ment skills will be needed by newly
graduated physical therapists in the
year 2010?
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Method
Sample
To obtain a diverse representation
of opinions on the research ques-
tions, physical therapists from across
the United States who worked in
various clinical practice settings
were surveyed. A sample of 2,500
physical therapists was drawn from
the APTA membership list in Octo-
ber 2004 and stratified into those in
clinical practice and those in aca-
demia to ensure a sufficiently large
response from full-time educators.
Specifically, 2,000 names were ran-
domly selected from members in
clinical work settings, and the re-
maining 500 (20% of the total sam-
ple) were randomly selected from
members whose primary setting was
academia. The overall sample size of
2,500 was established because we
anticipated a response rate of ap-
proximately 20%, which is typical
for a complex, mailed survey. In ad-
dition, a power analysis suggested
that between 400 and 500 partici-
pants would be needed for the
planned statistical analyses, based on
an effect size of approximately 0.20,
an alpha level of .05, and a desired
power of 0.70.18
A total of 435 physical therapists re-
turned the survey questionnaire for
a response rate of 17.4%. Four hun-
dred seventeen of the survey ques-
tionnaires were considered usable
and were included in subsequent
analyses. Participants included full-
time educators (21.2%), full-time
clinicians (32.6%), clinicians with
some managerial responsibilities
(41%), and others who had retired or
were temporarily out of the workforce
(5.2%). Respondents lived in 46 states,
the District of Columbia, and Puerto
Rico and were well distributed among
Number 3 Physical Therapy f 263
Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

Table 1. Survey Instrument

Distribution of Participant Sample by Location of Practice (N⫽417) As stated previously, a new survey
instrument was needed: (1) to orga-
Regiona (States Represented) Frequency % APTA %b
nize the A&M skills in a manner that

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East North Central (IL, IN, MI, OH, WI) 68 16.3 15.5 is consistent with the business and
South Atlantic (DE, DC, FL, GA, MD, NC, SC, 67 16.1 17.3 management literature, (2) to pro-
VA, WV) duce a more parsimonious survey in-
Pacific (AK, CA, HI, OR, WA) 58 13.9 14.7 strument than had been used in
Middle Atlantic (NJ, NY, PA) 50 12.0 14.4 Lopopolo and colleagues’7 original
research (ie, complete in its capture
West South Central (AR, LA, OK, TX) 47 11.3 8.5
of all appropriate content, yet prac-
West North Central (IA, KS, MN, MO, NE, SD) 43 10.3 9.9 tical and efficient for survey respon-
Mountain (AZ, CO, ID, MT, NV, NM, UT) 40 9.6 7.8 dents to complete20), and (3) to
New England (CT, MA, RI, VT) 22 5.3 6.9 transform all behaviors into skill
statements by changing definitions
East South Central (AL, KY, MS, TN) 20 4.8 5.0
into action statements.
Other (PR) 2 0.5 n/a
a
Same as regions used by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE) As a starting point, we used the
(source: 2005 Fact Sheet: physical therapist education programs. Available at: http://www.apta.org/
AM/Template.Redirect.cfm?TEMPLATE⫽/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&CONTENTID⫽23836. Accessed
FINHOP model as a framework to
October 31, 2006). Missing states from this study were Maine, New Hampshire, North Dakota, and organize the A&M skills defined by
Wyoming.
b
2005 American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) member survey (N⫽8,309).19 n/a⫽not
Lopopolo and colleagues’ research7
applicable. (see Tab. 4 for category definitions).
The steps involved in the placement
of the A&M skills within the 6 cate-
10 regions defined by APTA (Tab. 1). (47.7%) had up to 16 years of experi- gory framework included: (1) an ini-
Seventy percent of the participants ence as a physical therapist (Tab. 3). tial refinement of the skill list and
were women. Just over half of the re- The predominant clinical practice set- skill definitions by the researchers,
spondents (57.3%) had completed a ting was private, outpatient, or group (2) a card sort process using subject
baccalaureate physical therapist pro- practice (23.4%). All of these demo- matter experts (SMEs) to place the
fessional education program, and half graphic outcomes were consistent skills into the appropriate FINHOP
(50.4%) reported that the master’s de- with the APTA’s 2005 member survey category, (3) a follow-up review and
gree was their highest earned degree results, which reported on data gath- categorization of skills that had not
(Tab. 2). Nearly half of the participants ered in 2004.19 been consistently categorized in the
card sort step, and (4) an examina-
tion of the skill list for exclusivity.
Table 2. These steps are outlined more com-
Educational Background of Study Participants pletely in Figure 2. Card sorting has
Frequency % APTA %a long been used in the social sciences
as a means of gathering survey data
Type of physical therapist professional
education program completed to understand how people think
about the organize a set of con-
Baccalaureate 233 57.3 54.0
cepts.21–24 This method has been
Master’s 135 33.3 35.5 found to be a fast and interesting
Doctoral 10 2.5 3.1 way to obtain valid and reliable data
Other 28 6.9 7.4 that can be analyzed using ordinal
statistical procedures and appears to
Highest earned degree
be effective in reducing the more
Baccalaureate 113 27.9 37.3 serious forms of systematic response
Master’s 204 50.4 47.9 error.22
Doctorate in physical therapy 39 9.6 7.4
During the follow-up review of 19
Other doctorate 44 10.9 6.1
skills that had not been consistently
Other 5 1.2 1.3 categorized by the SMEs, 2 of the 3
a
2005 American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) member survey (N⫽8,309). 19
researchers independently reviewed

264 f Physical Therapy Volume 87 Number 3 March 2007

 Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

the skills, identified problems that Table 3.

likely hindered their classification Years of Experience as a Physical Therapist as Compared With American Physical
during the card sort process, and Therapy Association Data (n⫽405)
suggested options for resolution. In- Experience (y) Frequency % APTA %a

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variably, the problem with skill clas-
⬍2 14 3.5 1.1
sification related to imprecise skill
definitions. Due to time constraints, 2–6 66 16.3 20.7
the researchers did not go back to 7–11 63 15.6 17.4
the SMEs for placement of these 12–16 50 12.3 14.4
skills into categories. Rather, the re-
17–21 54 13.3 12.7
searchers agreed on category place-
ment of 17 skills and deletion of 2 22–26 60 14.8 12.7
skills that were considered to be ⬎26 98 24.2 21.0
redundant. The last step was to es- a
2005 American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) member survey (N⫽8,309). 19

tablish preliminary subcategories

within each FINHOP category to ex-
amine the skills for exclusivity. Four-
teen additional skills were deleted at
this step, resulting in 121 skills for
inclusion in the final A&M survey
instrument.
The final survey instrument (ques-
tionnaire) was compiled into a 12-
page booklet format. The first and
second pages included demographic
questions and instructions, and the
last page allowed for participant
comments. The remaining 9 pages
included the list of 121 skills along
with their corresponding definitions,
grouped within the FINHOP catego-
ries. The list of skills with their ac-
companying definitions is included
in the Appendix. For each skill, par-
ticipants were asked to identify what
they believed would be the skill
level, and the accompanying knowl-
edge level, needed by a newly grad-
uated physical therapist to be suc-
cessful in clinical practice in the year
2010. Each item was scored on a
7-point Likert-type level of indepen-
dence scale that measured both skill
and knowledge levels, where a score
of 7 represented total independence
and a score of 1 represented total
dependence (Fig. 3). Survey partici-
pants were instructed to first select
the skill level and then determine the
appropriate level of accompanying
knowledge. The resulting combina-
tion would determine the actual
score to be circled for each skill.
Because the format for the response
scale was more complex than is typ-
ically found in a survey instrument,
the wording used in the scale and
clarity of instructions were pretested
using a group of 10 clinicians. The
refinement of wording and clarity
proceeded until group consensus on
these characteristics was achieved.
Unlike in the Delphi study by Lopo-
polo et al,7 in which skill and knowl-
edge were viewed as separate con-
structs and were measured on 2
separate scales, in the present study
we considered skill level (ie, level of
independence) to be the primary
construct that is supported by requi-
site knowledge. Therefore, our
Table 4.
FINHOPa Categories and Definitions
Category Name
Finance
Information management
Networking
Human resource management
Operations
Planning and forecasting
a
The acronym “FINHOP” represents the 6 categories of the administration and management model.
7-point measurement scale was de-
signed to capture both constructs si-
multaneously (Fig. 3).
We interpreted a median score of 7
to mean that the new graduate
would be ready for independent per-
formance of an A&M skill, whereas at
the other end of the spectrum, me-
dian scores of 1 and 2 would indicate
no expectation for readiness to per-
form the skill. Median scores of 3 and
4 would indicate a need for substan-
tial assistance to perform a skill, and
median scores of 5 and 6 would in-
dicate that the new graduate should
be moderately independent (ie,
ready to perform the skill with only
limited assistance). Differentiation of
Definition
Planning, controlling the financial operation of a
business
Managing tangible information
Managing the interactions of various individuals or
groups
Managing personnel who provide direct or indirect
service to customers
Managing day-to-day nonpersonnel matters within
the organization
Being involved in determining the future course of
action for the organization.

March 2007 Volume 87 Number 3 Physical Therapy f 265

Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

scores between 3 and 4 or between

INPUT 5 and 6 were based on differing lev-
els of knowledge that would be re-
quired. For example, while only lim-

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ited knowledge related to a skill
would be required for a score of 5,
the new graduate would be ex-
pected to have substantial knowl-
edge related to a skill to have a score
of 6. If one considers being able to
perform a skill with only limited as-
sistance as the baseline expectation
for entry-level performance, then we
interpreted that A&M skills with a
median score of 5, 6, or 7 should be
considered for inclusion in Doctor of
Physical Therapy (DPT) education
programs and receive more empha-
sis than A&M skills with scores of 1
through 4.

A final step was to test the stability of

responses for the entire survey. We
selected 16 physical therapists from
a variety of work settings to partici-
pate in a test-retest reliability study.
Each participant completed the en-
tire survey twice with a minimum of
2 weeks between sessions. Using a
paired t test to compare the first- and
second-survey scores on the overall
average of all 121 items, no differ-
ences were found between the first
and second sets of scores (t⫽⫺.503,
df⫽15, P⫽.623). This result suggests
overall stability of responses over
time, but does not address the poten-
tial variability of responses within
the 6 FINHOP categories. To explore
this issue, intraclass correlation coef-
ficients (ICCs) were calculated for
the responses within each FINHOP
category using the average of all
items within each category as the
variable of interest.

Figure 2. The ICC was selected because it is a

Steps in administration and management (A&M) instrument refinement. The acronym measurement of both correlation
“FINHOP” represents the 6 categories of the administration and management model and agreement between repeated
(see Tab. 4 for FINHOP categories and definitions).
measures, while taking into account
the variance in responses, and there-
fore is an appropriate statistical
means to examine test-retest reliabil-
ity.20,25,26 Because average scores

266 f Physical Therapy Volume 87 Number 3 March 2007


Figure 3.
Survey scoring system.
were used in the calculation, ICC
model 3,k was selected, where k is
the number of raters.27 Furthermore,
a 2-way mixed-effects ICC model was
selected, where raters’ effects are as-
sumed to be random and survey item
(average) scores are fixed.25,27 The
calculated ICC (3,k) values for each
FINHOP category were as follows, in
descending order: human resources⫽
.90, operations⫽.80, finance⫽.78,
planning and forecasting⫽.77, net-
working⫽.61, and information man-
agement⫽.61. Portney and Watkins28
suggested that ICC values ⱖ.75 sug-
gest good reliability, whereas values
⬍.75 represent poor to moderate reli-
ability. Our results suggest good test-
retest reliability in 4 of the 6 FINHOP
categories and moderate reliability in
the remaining 2 categories.
Procedure
The questionnaires were mailed to
the random sample of 2,500 physical
therapists in November 2004. Par-
ticipants were informed that the re-
turn of the completed survey ques-
tionnaire would be construed as
informed consent. Each package in-
cluded the survey booklet, a cover
letter explaining the project and re-
questing participation, a stamped re-
turn envelope, and a small incentive
(APTA decal). Reminder postcards
were sent to the entire sample 2
weeks after the initial mailing.
Data Analysis
To address the 3 preliminary hypoth-
eses, we used the following inde-
pendent variables: role of respon-
dent (clinician, manager, educator)
March 2007
Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010
and work setting (inpatient, hospital-
based outpatient, community out-
patient, other community-based prac-
tice). The dependent variables were
the average scores of the skills within
each of the 6 FINHOP categories.
Two analyses were necessary to iden-
tify whether differences existed in par-
ticipants’ responses due to demo-
graphic variables. First, a chi-square
test of independence was used to de-
termine the association between the 2
clinical roles (clinician versus man-
ager) and the 4 practice settings.
Then, a 2⫻4 factorial multivariate anal-
ysis of variance (MANOVA) was con-
ducted to test the 3 null hypotheses
stated above. If no differences were
found in these analyses, then 1-way
MANOVAs were performed to deter-
mine whether the average scores of
any of the FINHOP categories differed
based on role (educator, clinician, and
manager) and the participants’ years
of clinical experience as categorized in
Table 3.
If no differences were found in any
of the analyses, the responses from
all participants could be combined
to address the primary research ques-
tion. First, to study the correlation of
responses within each FINHOP cate-
gory and to determine whether the
responses clustered together into sub-
categories (skill groups), an explor-
atory principal component factor anal-
ysis with varimax rotation would be
performed on each FINHOP catego-
ry.20,21 Scree plots and eigenvalues
ⱖ1.0 would be used to ascertain the
appropriate number of skill groups
Volume 87
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within each category. Then, each ex-
ploratory analysis would be followed
by a confirmatory factor analysis to
verify placement of skills into skill
groups based on similar levels of inde-
pendence. A factor loading of 0.5 or
greater would be used to determine
the appropriate placement of each
skill in a skill group. Subsequently, the
skill groups would be named by the
researchers based on the nature of the
skills included in each skill group.20
The names would reflect the level of
independence of the skills in the skill
groups. In addition, an analysis of the
internal consistency reliability (Cron-
bach alpha) of each FINHOP category
and subsequent (statistically derived)
skill group would be performed to as-
sess the consistency of responses.
Finally, the descriptive statistics for
the FINHOP categories, skill groups,
and individual skills could be exam-
ined to answer the primary research
question: Which A&M skills will be
needed by newly graduated physical
therapists in the year 2010?
Results
Analysis of Participants’
Responses for Differences
Across Work Settings or
Participant Roles
The chi-square analysis demon-
strated no association between the
2 primary independent variables,
clinical setting and primary role
(␹2⫽5.28, df⫽3, P⫽.152) (Tab. 5).
The subsequent 2⫻4 MANOVA
found no differences between clini-
cal and managerial roles on the aver-
age scores of any of the 6 FINHOP
Number 3 Physical Therapy f 267
Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

Table 5. A total of 16 skill groups emerged

Distribution of Therapists in Clinical Practice by Clinical Setting and Primary Rolesa from the factor analyses of the FIN-
HOP categories. All items achieved a
Clinical Setting Primary Role
factor loading score of 0.50 or

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Managerb Clinicianc Total (%) higher, and each item loaded on only
Inpatient, acute d
42 34 76 (27.0) one factor in both the exploratory
and confirmatory analyses. As dis-
Outpatient, hospital 36 38 74 (26.3)
played in Table 7, human resources
Outpatient, private 58 31 89 (31.7) and operations each had 4 skill
Community-basede 21 21 42 (14.9) groups, finance and planning and
Total (%) 157 (55.9) 124 (44.1) 281 (100.0) forecasting each had 3 skill groups,
and information and networking
a
␹ ⫽5.28, df⫽3, P⫽.152.
2
b
Engages in management and supervision activities some of the time (may engage in patient care). each had a single skill group. A fairly
c
Engages in patient care activities on a regular basis with no management or supervision large portion of the variability in the
responsibilities reported.
d
Includes acute care hospital, subacute care rehabilitation hospital, skilled nursing facility/extended data within each of the FINHOP cat-
care facility/intermediate care facility. egories was captured in the factor
e
Includes health and wellness facility, industry, home care, school system.
analysis procedure, with networking
lowest at 53.5% and finance highest
at 85.4%. The internal reliability co-
categories (F6,177⫽0.49, P⫽.816), no responses from all 417 participants efficient (Cronbach alpha) of each
differences among 4 practice set- were combined for all remaining skill group ranged from .76 to .99,
tings on the average scores of any analyses. indicating good to very good corre-
of the FINHOP categories (F18,501⫽ lation among the responses within
0.92, P⫽.55), and no interaction Determination of Skill Groups the skill groups and good discrimi-
between clinical roles and practice Within FINHOP Category nation among skill groups.20 The re-
settings (F18,501⫽1.23, P⫽.23). In Structure sponses to individual skills within
addition, 1-way MANOVAs produced The internal consistency of re- most of the skill groups demon-
no differences among educator, cli- sponses within FINHOP categories strated a great deal of variability in
nician, and manager roles (F12,490⫽ (Cronbach alpha) ranged from .87 to that the entire 7-point scale was
1.04, P⫽.41) or in the respondents’ .98 (Tab. 6). These results are con- utilized.
number of years of clinical exper- sidered to be in the “very good”
ience (F36,1114⫽1.15, P⫽.25) on the range, indicating good correlation Determination of A&M Skills
average score of any of the 6 FINHOP among the responses within each Needed by Newly Graduated
categories. Because no differences category.20 Physical Therapists in 2010
were found in any of these analyses, Median scores were calculated for
each FINHOP category, skill group,
and individual skill. At the category
Table 6. (FINHOP) level, a hierarchy of A&M
Internal Consistency Reliability Coefficients of Administration and Management skills began to emerge with human
(FINHOPa) Categories resource, information, and opera-
FINHOP N No. of Mean Median Reliability tions skills having higher median
Category Items (SD) Coefficientb scores (5.3–5.6) than networking,
Human resource 343 31 5.47 (0.05) 5.61 .958 planning and forecasting, and fi-
management nance skills (4.6 –5.0) (Tab. 6). The
Information 402 7 5.29 (0.05) 5.57 .871
median scores of all 16 skill groups,
management which were derived from factor anal-
yses, ranged from 4.3 to 6.5 (Tab. 8).
Operations 387 20 5.19 (0.05) 5.30 .957
Networking 401 8 4.95 (0.05) 5.00 .872 Four skill groups (self-management,
Planning and 379 27 4.52 (0.06) 4.70 .980 compliance, ethics and culture, and
forecasting coding) exhibited median scores of
Finance 374 28 4.55 (0.07) 4.64 .985 6.0 or greater, indicating that the
a
The acronym “FINHOP” represents the 6 categories of the administration and management model.
new therapist should need only lim-
b
Cronbach alpha. ited assistance in performing these

268 f Physical Therapy Volume 87 Number 3 March 2007

 Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

Table 7.
Factor Structure and Descriptive Statistics for 16 Administration and Management Skill Groups

FINHOPa Skill Group (Factor) N % Mean Median Minimum Maximum Reliability

Category Variance (SD) Coefficientc

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Explainedb
Human resource 343
management
Leading and directing (1) 46.9 5.3 (1.1) 5.4 1.5 7 .954
Personnel 8.4 5.0 (1.2) 5.1 1.2 7 .933
management (2)
Self-management (3) 5.8 6.2 (0.7) 6.5 2.7 7 .764
Ethics and culture (4) 4.2 6.0 (1.0) 6.3 1.3 7 .778
Information Information 402 56.9 5.3 (1.1) 5.6 1.6 7 .871
management management (1)
Operations 387
Operational analysis (1) 55.2 4.9 (1.2) 5.0 1.1 7 .952
Operational 10.1 4.8 (1.3) 5.0 1 7 .911
management (2)
Compliance (3) 5.6 6.2 (0.9) 6.5 1.3 7 .820
Quality and risk 4.5 5.2 (1.1) 5.3 1.8 7 .883
management (4)
Networking Networking (1) 401 53.5 5.0 (1.1) 5.0 1.8 7 .872
Planning and 379
forecasting
Strategic planning and 65.8 4.4 (1.2) 4.5 1 7 .969
marketing (1)
Environmental 5.5 4.3 (1.3) 4.3 1 7 .950
assessment (2)
Practice analysis (3) 3.9 4.9 (1.2) 5.1 1 7 .925
Finance 374
Financial analysis and 70.6 4.3 (1.4) 4.4 1 7 .988
budgeting (1)
Reimbursement review 9.1 4.8 (1.4) 5.0 1 7 .991
and analysis (2)
Coding (3) 5.7 5.6 (1.3) 6.0 1 7 .926
a
The acronym “FINHOP” represents the 6 categories of the administration and management model.
b
Percentage of variance within the category.
c
Reliability coefficient based on Cronbach alpha.

skills and should have substantial
knowledge about them (Fig. 3).
Three skill groups (marketing and
strategic planning, environmental as-
sessment, and financial analysis and
budgeting) demonstrated median
scores of less than 5.0, indicating
that the new therapist should need
substantial assistance in performing
the skills, but have limited knowl-
edge about them. Finally, inspection
of median scores of individual skills
(Appendix) revealed that only 6 skills
(listening skills, verbal and nonverbal
communication, personnel licensure
and certification requirements, profes-
sional ethics, documentation require-
ments, and time management) had a
median score of 7, while 25 skills had
median scores of 6. Of the remaining
90 skills, 61 had median scores of 5,
while 29 had median scores of 4. No
individual skill had a median score
below 4.
Discussion
Using visual inspection, we found
our sample to be remarkably similar
to APTA’s 2005 member distribu-
tion19 in terms of location of prac-
tice, type of entry-level physical ther-
apy degree earned, highest degree
earned, level of experience, and pri-

March 2007 Volume 87 Number 3 Physical Therapy f 269

Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

Table 8. represented in the 6 FINHOP catego-

Administration and Management Skill Groups From Highest to Lowest Median ries to be consistent with that found
Scores in the business and management lit-
FINHOPa Skill Group erature. We believe that this taxon-

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Category omy improves upon Lopopolo and
Name Medianb No. of Items colleagues’7 results.
Human resource Self-management 6.50 6
management FINHOP Category Analysis
Operations Compliance 6.50 4 When we examined the median
scores for each of the FINHOP cate-
Human resource Ethics and culture 6.33 3
management gories, we found that the new grad-
uate would need to be moderately
Finance Coding 6.00 4
independent (median scores of 5
Information Information 5.57 7 or higher) in performing the skills
management management
in 4 FINHOP categories: human re-
Human resource Leading and 5.42 12 sources, information, operations, and
management directing networking (Tab. 6). Only 2 of the 6
Operations Quality and risk 5.25 4 categories—planning and forecasting
management and finance— demonstrated median
Planning and Practice analysis 5.14 7 scores below 5. The variability of me-
forecasting dian scores among the FINHOP cate-
Human resource Personnel 5.10 10 gories suggests a hierarchy among
management management A&M skills expected of the new phys-
Networking Networking 5.00 8 ical therapist, with human resource
and information management being
Operations Operational analysis 5.00 8
the most critical entry-level skills for
Operations Operational 5.00 4 future DPT graduates to possess. This
management
hierarchy of A&M skill categories rep-
Finance Reimbursement 5.00 6 resents a departure from established
review and
APTA core documents3,6,29 as well as
analysis
from the original LAMP model1 in that
Planning and Strategic planning 4.54 13 none of them provided a sense of the
forecasting and marketing
relative importance of A&M skills for
Finance Financial analysis 4.39 18 new physical therapists. However, we
and budgeting
found the category level of analysis to
Planning and Environmental 4.29 7 be too broad to yield meaningful sug-
forecasting assessment gestions for practical application of
a
b
The acronym “FINHOP” represents the 6 categories of the administration and management model. specific A&M skills. Therefore, we
Based on a 7-point Likert-type scale, where 1⫽no knowledge or skill required and 7⫽independent
performance of skill with substantial knowledge.
chose to statistically group skills
within each category in order to draw
more specific conclusions.
mary work setting (Tabs. 1, 2, and 3). Because Lopopolo et al7 suggested
This finding suggests that our sam- that the Guide-based structure3 they Skill Group Analysis
pling technique captured a represen- used in their research may have con- Unlike Lopopolo et al,7 who used
tative group of physical therapists. fused their subjects while they professional judgment to identify 38
Unlike previous research,16,17 we scored A&M skills, in this study we groups of A&M content, we discov-
found that neither primary role nor used a new 6-category framework of ered 16 skill groups using factor anal-
type of work setting led to differ- A&M skills (FINHOP) that was based yses to help us further examine the
ences in any of the skill and knowl- on a thorough review of business skills needed by new physical thera-
edge ratings of the A&M categories. and health care management litera- pist graduates (Tabs. 7 and 8). These
Thus, we were able to use the entire ture.15 Using level of independence findings indicate that the new grad-
sample to learn more about physical in a skill needed at entry into prac- uate would need to have a substan-
therapists’ expectations for new DPT tice as our primary measure, we tial level of knowledge about and be
graduates in 2010. found the taxonomy of A&M skills moderately to completely indepen-

270 f Physical Therapy Volume 87 Number 3 March 2007


dent (median scores between 6 and
7) in performing skills in 4 of the 16
skill groups: self-management, com-
pliance, ethics and culture, and cod-
ing. For skills in 9 of the skill groups,
the new graduate would need to be
moderately independent, but pos-
sess only a limited level of knowl-
edge (median scores between 5 and
5.57). Finally, the new graduate
would need substantial assistance in
performing skills in only 3 skill
groups (median scores below 5).
These findings suggest that 13 skill
groups contain A&M skills that
should be included in entry-level
DPT education programs and that a
hierarchy of independence exists
among these skill groups. However,
the level of instruction and learning
cannot be determined without pay-
ing attention to the individual A&M
skills in each skill group.
Two skill groups—self-management
and compliance— had the highest
median scores, suggesting the high-
est levels of independence. They
reside in the human resource and
operations categories, respectively.
Self-management includes skills in
communication, stress management,
complying with licensure require-
ments, and participating in role mod-
eling and self-assessment for the job
market, whereas compliance in-
cludes skills related to adhering to
organizational policies and proce-
dures and time management. Inter-
estingly, most of these skills relate to
how the individual conducts himself
or herself and require reflection, as
suggested by Jensen et al.30 Many of
them also appear in the Guide3 and
the Normative Model6 and in May
and colleagues’ Generic Abilities.4
Additionally, communication, inter-
personal skills, and self-direction are
identified as basic competencies in
the Leadership Effectiveness Frame-
work developed by the US Office of
Personnel Management.31 Although
these skills may not be unique to
A&M content, their appearance at
March 2007
Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010
the top of an A&M list of skills, with
individual scores of 6 or 7, suggests
that DPT graduates will be expected
to have mastered these skills prior to
leaving the education program and,
perhaps, need them as prerequisites
for development of other A&M skills.
The ethics and culture skill group,
which is part of the human resource
category, demonstrated the third
highest level of independence. This
skill group contains 3 items with in-
dividual median scores of 6 or 7: ac-
tivities that reflect adherence to pro-
fessional and business ethics as well
as to organizational culture. The high
rating of skills in this skill group sug-
gests that, prior to program comple-
tion, new DPT graduates will be ex-
pected to demonstrate appropriate
ethical practice behaviors, which are
at the core of professionalism. This
result supports Lopopolo and Scha-
fer’s5 conceptualization of the under-
lying contextual role that profession-
alism plays in clinical practice as well
as APTA’s emphasis on the role of
professionalism in its Vision 2020
statement.2 Like the skills in the
higher-ranked self-management and
compliance skill groups, the ethics
and culture group focuses on behav-
iors related to the conduct of the
individual therapist.
Coding, which is in the finance cat-
egory, is the fourth highest rated skill
group. It contains 4 skills that ad-
dress use of coding systems to obtain
reimbursement for services and is
the highest rated skill group that be-
longs solely in the administration
and management domain. Clearly,
new DPT graduates are expected to
be nearly independent and very
knowledgeable in using the reim-
bursement coding systems required
in various physical therapist practice
settings. However, we suggest that
determining what is taught should
be guided by the scores of the indi-
vidual skills within the skill group.
Among the coding skills, for exam-
Volume 87
ple, our results suggest that empha-
sis should be placed on teaching stu-
dents how to use the International
Classification of Diseases (ICD),32
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Healthcare Common Procedure Cod-
ing System (HCPCS),33 and Current
Procedural Terminology (CPT)34
coding systems, because all 3 skills
had median scores of 6. The resource-
based relative value system (RBRVS),
however, had a median score of 5,
suggesting that the graduate should
possess a less thorough knowledge re-
lated to this skill than to the coding
skills prior to entry into practice.
By contrast, the skills in the reim-
bursement review and analysis skill
group, also within the finance cate-
gory, demonstrated a lower com-
bined median score (5.0) than those
in the coding group (6.0). These me-
dian scores suggest that skills in both
skill groups should be included in
DPT education programs, although
the amount of knowledge that a
graduate should be expected to pos-
sess upon entry into practice would
differ. All skills in the reimbursement
review and analysis skill group dem-
onstrated median scores of 5, sug-
gesting they should receive equal
emphasis in the DPT curriculum.
The level of knowledge expected at
entry into clinical practice is lower
for reimbursement review and anal-
ysis skills, perhaps because they ap-
pear to be more complicated than
merely learning how to use various
coding systems and may well re-
quire a higher level of critical think-
ing to master. The lower median
score may suggest that these skills
are expected to be refined after the
new graduate begins his or her first
clinical position.
New graduates are expected to be
moderately independent in perform-
ing the A&M skills in the information
management, leading and directing,
quality/risk management, practice an-
alysis, personnel management (except
for 1 skill), networking (except for 2
Number 3 Physical Therapy f 271
Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010
skills), operational analysis, and opera-
tional management skill groups, but
are not expected to have extensive
knowledge about each skill. These re-
sults suggest that all the individual
skills within these skill groups should
be addressed in DPT curricula with
the degree of emphasis guided by the
median score of each skill.
The new graduate was expected to
need substantial assistance and have
limited supporting knowledge upon
entry into practice (median scores
below 5) for skills in only 3 skill
groups: strategic planning and mar-
keting, financial analysis and budget-
ing, and environmental assessment.
Here again a review of the individual
skills within each group reveals that
median scores were either 4 or 5
(Appendix) and that this information
would be helpful in determining
which skills to emphasize in the DPT
curriculum. Using this type of analy-
sis for skills in every skill group may
assist educators in determining
which A&M skills to include in their
curricula and how much emphasis to
place on them.
Interestingly, the Normative Model6
includes classroom instructional ob-
jectives requiring higher skill levels
in the areas of financial management,
establishing a business plan, and par-
ticipating in activities related to mar-
keting and public relations than
would appear to be indicated from
the results of this study. Thus, our
study may provide useful informa-
tion for future editions of the Nor-
mative Model. These findings may be
even more useful to future ren-
ditions of APTA’s recent Board of
Directors–approved document on
minimum skills required for new
physical therapist graduates.29
Finally, we noted that the hierarchy
of A&M skill groups based on level of
independence tended to follow a
pattern in which the highest expec-
tations (median scores of 6 or 7)
272 f Physical Therapy Volume 87
were placed on skills that related to
the individual (ie, the new DPT grad-
uate), with lower expectations (me-
dian scores of 5 or 6) often associ-
ated with organizational-related skills
and even lower expectations (me-
dian scores of 4) associated with
extra-organizational skills. Analysis
of this unexpected pattern is beyond
the scope of this study, but it offers
an intriguing model for making deci-
sions about what, when, and how
the new DPT graduate should gain
independence in various A&M skills.
Study Limitations
We identified 3 potential limitations
of this study. First, although respon-
dents were instructed to respond to
each item in the context of what will
be expected of DPT graduates in the
year 2010, it was impossible to con-
trol whether they kept this instruc-
tion in mind as they completed the
survey. Even if they lapsed into
thinking about what is expected of
today’s new graduates, however, the
results suggest that “future” DPT
graduates will need to demonstrate
proficiency in many A&M skills.
Second, the overall return rate of
17.4% for this questionnaire was low
for a survey, although this result was
anticipated because of the length of
the questionnaire and the compli-
cated scoring system. To compen-
sate for an expected low return rate,
however, we increased the size of
the sampling frame to ensure that we
had adequate power to carry out the
desired statistical analyses.18 Third,
the use of one scale to capture 2
constructs (skill and knowledge)
may have limited the potential range
of responses to level of knowledge
available to respondents. However,
using 2 separate scales, as in Lopo-
polo and colleagues’ study,7 or ex-
panding the scale beyond 7 points
could have diminished the return
rate further. Based on the assump-
tion that the level of skill indepen-
dence is the primary construct to be
Number 3
defined, we believe that the neces-
sary level of knowledge to achieve a
specific skill level should follow
closely.
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Conclusion
This study provides empirical evi-
dence for the A&M skills needed by
the DPT graduate. The variation in
median scores among the 6 FINHOP
categories as well as among the 16
A&M skill groups suggests a hierar-
chy of A&M skill acquisition for the
new graduate physical therapist in
2010 regardless of practice setting.
The results also provide information
related to specific A&M skills that
could be used to add specificity and
priority in future editions of APTA
core documents that address new
graduate competencies. By under-
standing what is expected of future
new graduates, educators will be
better able to design and implement
curricula that better prepare their
graduates for clinical practice. Fi-
nally, the findings may provide guid-
ance into what knowledge and skills
physical therapists should further de-
velop after they enter clinical prac-
tice, information that may be useful
to educators who teach postprofes-
sional courses for physical therapists
and to APTA as it develops educa-
tional offerings at the national and
component levels to develop skilled
physical therapist managers.
All authors provided concept/idea/research
design, writing, and data analysis. Dr Schafer
and Dr Lopopolo provided data collection,
project management, and fund procure-
ment. Dr Schafer provided clerical support.
The authors acknowledge the following
physical therapist students who assisted with
the pilot studies for this research: Aimee Ahr-
ons, Ryan Long, Tikisha Thomas, and Tran
Tran.
A summary of this research was presented at
the Combined Sections Meeting of the
American Physical Therapy Association; Feb-
ruary 1–5, 2006; San Diego, Calif.
This study was funded, in part, by a grant
from the Health Policy and Administration
March 2007
 Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

Section of the American Physical Therapy
Association.
This article was received January 4, 2006, and
was accepted October 10, 2006.
14 Mintzberg H. Rounding out the manager’s
job. Sloan Manage Rev. 1994;36(1):11–
26.
15 Luedtke-Hoffmann KA. Identification of
Essential Managerial Work Activities
26 McGraw KO, Wong SP. Forming infer-
ences about some intraclass correlation
coefficients. Psych Methods. 1996;1(1):
30 – 46.
27 Shrout PE, Fleiss JL. Intraclass correlations:

DOI: 10.2522/ptj.20060003
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March 2007 Volume 87 Number 3 Physical Therapy f 273

Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

Appendix.
Administration and Management Skills, Median Scores, and Their Definitions Organized by Category and Skill Group

Category/Skill Groupa Skill Median Definition

Score

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HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Self-management Listening skills 7.0 Listen actively when another person speaks
Verbal and nonverbal communication 7.0 Receive, understand, accurately interpret,
and respond to orally presented
information
Personnel licensure and certification 7.0 Comply with applicable licensure and
requirements certification requirements and standards
for the utilization of personnel
Job search 6.0 Engage in a process to assess one’s
potential in the job market and develop
a strategy to find the best fit between
oneself and potential future employers
Manage stress 6.0 Use management practices to identify,
control, and prevent excessive stress for
oneself and employees
Role modeling 6.0 Model one’s behavior after an individual’s
behaviors that are perceived to be
worthy of emulation
Ethics and culture Professional ethics 7.0 Use a systematic approach to resolving
moral issues and dilemmas based on
ethical principles and guidelines as
stipulated by professional organizations
Corporate and business ethics and 6.0 Engage in business activities in a manner
citizenship that reflects ethical decision-making
practices as guided by professions or
regulatory bodies
Organizational culture 6.0 Behave in a manner that demonstrates an
understanding of the behavioral norms
that guide the actions of employees in an
organization or its subunits
Leading and directing Leadership 6.0 Use strategies and processes to move staff
and subordinates to action in a desired
direction
Coaching 6.0 Engage in an interactive process with an
employee that focuses on ways to
improve performance
Motivating 6.0 Use internal or external forces to initiate or
stimulate work-related behaviors on the
part of the employee
Direction 6.0 Assign and control work performed by
another employee
Manage conflict 6.0 Recognize and manage disagreements
between people over issues of substance
or emotion that create friction and
impede the pursuit of organizational
goals
Team building 5.5 Empower and assist staff and subordinates
to combine efforts to accomplish
organizational goals that improve the
quality of the work

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 Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

Appendix.
Continued

Category/Skill Groupa Skill Median Definition

Score

Discipline
Managing the knowledge worker
Counseling
Mentoring
Manage and facilitate change
Manage diversity
Personnel management Performance appraisal
Policy and procedure compliance
Job descriptions
Job expectations
Recruitment and retention
Professional and personal
development
Competency assessment
Career ladders
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5.0 Confront a subordinate with objective
evidence of discrepancies between
expected and actual behaviors and
provide opportunities to rectify
behavioral gaps
5.0 Manage the worker who uses mental
processing to solve problems
5.0 Provide formal input to help an employee
demonstrate behaviors that are
consistent with organizational
expectations
5.0 Engage in a relationship between an
influential or knowledgeable person
(mentor) and a protégé to support the
protégé’s career development
5.0 Empower and assist staff and subordinates
to participate in the changes of existing
structures or processes to achieve a
desired outcome
5.0 Use the full range of human resources to
improve organizational effectiveness
6.0 Review job performance based on a job
description, performance specifications,
and performance objectives
6.0 Ensure that staff members have access to
and comply with all organizational
policies and procedures
5.0 Develop the list of duties and
responsibilities, work conditions,
relationships to other jobs, and skills,
abilities, and training necessary to do the
work
5.0 Articulate the duties, responsibilities, and
expectations regarding what an
employee will be expected to contribute
to the organization
5.0 Engage in activities to encourage qualified
personnel to join the organization and to
retain currently employed staff
5.0 Assess professional and personal needs of
staff and provide knowledge and skills
necessary to ensure that they provide
quality services
5.0 Use performance assessment processes in
core competency areas followed by the
development of a plan to resolve existing
problems
5.0 Develop opportunities to increase
responsibility, challenges, learning, and
financial rewards

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Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

Appendix.
Continued

Category/Skill Groupa Skill Median Definition

Score

OPERATIONS
Compliance
Quality and risk management
Operational management
Operational analysis
Contract personnel
Outsourcing
Documentation requirements
Time management
Policies and procedures
Regulatory and accreditation
requirements
Quality management
Quality assessment, quality
improvement, utilization review,
and peer review
Continuous quality improvement,
continuous organizational
improvement
Risk management
Project management
Meeting management
Resource allocation
Facility management
Process analysis
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5.0 Integrate contract personnel into an
organization’s operation
4.0 Use external contracted personnel to
provide services rather than, or in
addition to, employing personnel to do
the job
7.0 Comply with applicable documentation
requirements and standards
7.0 Ensure efficient and effective use of time
6.0 Use an organization’s fundamental
documents to guide behavior and
decision making
6.0 Comply with the guidelines and regulations
required by external governing bodies
that identify standards to be reflected in
an organization’s policies and procedures
6.0 Manage the services provided to individuals
and populations to increase the
likelihood of desired health outcomes
that are consistent with current
professional knowledge
5.0 Investigate all characteristics associated
with delivery of care, including best
evidence and outcome data, with a view
to conform to standards or to improve
customer satisfaction
5.0 Systematically and regularly evaluate the
organization’s systems, processes, and
procedures to ensure the continued
improvement of services and meeting of
customer expectations
5.0 Participate in a coordinated effort to
identify, assess, and minimize the risk of
harm or loss to the organization and its
employees or customers
5.0 Manage a new project to include team
selection, planning activities,
implementation, tracking progress, and
assessment of the final product
5.0 Utilize standard methods to plan, organize,
conduct, and provide follow-up for
formal and informal group meetings
5.0 Distribute resources to achieve
organizational objectives related to
outcomes, costs, and satisfaction
5.0 Oversee the use of space, equipment, and
technology in a clinical setting
5.0 Evaluate mechanisms through which
resources are used to meet the mission
and goals

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 Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010
Appendix.
Continued
Category/Skill Groupa Skill
Productivity analysis
Operational analysis
Satisfaction measures
Clinical and functional outcomes
Work volume analysis
Access
Development and revision of policies
and procedures
FINANCE
Coding ICD-9 coding
HCPCS coding
CPT coding
Resource-based relative value system
(RBRVS)
Reimbursement review and Private insurance reimbursement
analysis
Managed care reimbursement
Private pay reimbursement
State government reimbursement
Workers’ compensation
reimbursement
Federal government reimbursement
March 2007
Median Definition
Score
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5.0 Measure and interpret the relationship
between the resources used and the
services provided
5.0 Evaluate and interpret input, structure,
process, or output variables that can
affect the operation of the business
5.0 Measure the satisfaction of various
constituencies with services provided
5.0 Evaluate the current and future status of
operations attributed to services
provided
5.0 Measure the quantity of the services
provided by physical therapy and
interpret the findings
5.0 Measure the ease with which patients and
clients are able to obtain services and get
to the place of service
5.0 Participate in the development, revision,
and implementation of an organization’s
policies and procedures
6.0 Use the system for coding medical
diagnoses and/or diagnoses made by a
physical therapist
6.0 Use the system for coding physical therapy
services and supplies
6.0 Use the system for coding physical therapy
services and procedures
5.0 Use the system that translates physical
therapy services into provider
reimbursement
5.0 Review status of, or changes in, the
reimbursement picture related to private
insurance programs
5.0 Review status of, or changes in, the
reimbursement picture related to
managed care programs
5.0 Review status of, or changes in, the
reimbursement picture related to private
payment
5.0 Review status of, or changes in, the
reimbursement picture related to state
and federal programs
5.0 Review status of, or changes in, the
reimbursement picture related to
workers’ compensation programs
5.0 Review status of, or changes in, the
reimbursement picture related to federal
programs
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Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

Appendix.
Continued

Category/Skill Groupa Skill Median Definition

Score

Financial analysis
INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
Profit and loss analysis
Cost control
Cost-containment strategies
Return-on-investment (ROI) analysis
Cash flow budgeting
Revenue budgeting
Capital budgeting
Expense budgeting
Accounting
Economics
Balance-sheet analysis
Budget variance analysis
Cost-volume-profit (breakeven)
analysis
Ratio analysis
Cash-flow analysis
Accounts receivable analysis
Business outcomes
Accounts payable analysis
Access to and use of patient and
client management data
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5.0 Use financial data to determine whether a
business is making a profit or loss
5.0 Control operating costs and expenses and
capital costs
5.0 Implement specific strategies to reduce
costs/expenses
4.0 Determine the relationship between the
cost of an investment and its potential
income production
4.0 Develop or prepare a budget for cash flow
4.0 Develop or prepare a budget for revenue
4.0 Develop a capital budget to include
evaluating, comparing, and ranking of
multiple investment alternatives and
determining opportunity costs of each
option
4.0 Develop or prepare a budget for expenses
4.0 Record, classify, summarize, and
communicate financial data using a
formal system to aid and coordinate
financial and business decisions
4.0 Use information based on how society and
businesses choose to use limited
resources to produce goods and services
4.0 Use financial data to reflect current assets
and liabilities
4.0 Use financial data to investigate the causes
of differences between actual and
expected expenses or revenues
4.0 Study the relationships of service volume
to revenue, expenses, and net income
4.0 Use the relation between financial
measures to gain insight into the
financial status of the business that is not
evident in assessing individual measures
4.0 Use financial data to reflect current cash
flow
4.0 Use financial data to reflect current and
anticipated revenue
4.0 Use financial data to reflect overall financial
condition and growth patterns of a
business over a specific period of time
4.0 Use financial data to reflect current and
anticipated expenses
6.0 Use electronic means to retrieve, analyze,
summarize, and disseminate patient and
client management data to intra- and
extra-organizational consumers

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 Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

Appendix.
Continued

Category/Skill Groupa Skill Median Definition

Score

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Record keeping 6.0 Collect data in an organized manner and
produce a succinct and accurate
summation of the information for current
and future use
Data and information analysis 6.0 Review, revise, and interpret written
information to share with others
Data systems 5.0 Use electronic means to collect, store,
protect, verify, and retrieve all forms of
data integral to the operation of the
organization
Access to and use of operational 5.0 Use electronic means to retrieve, analyze,
management data summarize, and disseminate operational
data to consumers both within and
outside of the organization
Information systems assessment 5.0 Review status of, or changes in, the nature
of information systems used in the
parent organization or therapy practice
Tele-health 5.0 Use telecommunications or computer
technology from distant locations to
exchange information
NETWORKING
Consultation 6.0 Provide professional or expert opinion or
advice
Professional involvement 6.0 Participate on a regular basis in educational
and governance activities offered
through one’s professional organization
Managing across the continuum 5.0 Manage services in an integrated delivery
system or network to meet the
comprehensive needs of patients
Interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary 5.0 Concurrently manage members of an
management organization or organizational subdivision
who may be guided by different
educational preparation and philosophies
Coordination and collaboration 5.0 Develop and implement strategies to
enable individuals or groups to work
together
Negotiation 5.0 Engage in a give-and-take transaction
between 2 or more people in an attempt
to reach agreement
Organizational power and influence 4.0 Use elements of power and influence
(prestige, status, and control) that one
has over access to and distribution of
valued organizational resources, such as
people, information, property, and
money
Contract development 4.0 Negotiate, develop, and execute a contract
or enter into a contractual arrangement
with other parties

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Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010
Appendix.
Continued
Category/Skill Groupa Skill
PLANNING AND FORECASTING
Practice analysis Profession review
Length of stay (LOS) and number of
visits
Consumer identification
Rehabilitation sector analysis
Health care industry analysis
Regulatory analysis
Vision and mission
Strategic planning and Long-term planning
marketing
Planning implementation and
assessment
Goal setting
Competitor analysis
Risk taking
Strategic assessment and SWOT
analysis (strength, weakness,
opportunities, threats)
Organizational review
280 f Physical Therapy Volume 87 Number 3
Median Definition
Score
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6.0 Review the status of, or changes in, policy
articulated by the profession at various
levels (national, state, local) that may
affect physical therapist practice
6.0 Use data regarding length of time the client
is under treatment
5.0 Identify the individuals who indirectly or
directly may need or want to use your
product or service
5.0 Review the status of, or changes in, the
rehabilitation sector that may have a
bearing on future operation
5.0 Review the status of, or changes in, the
health care industry as a whole that may
have a bearing on future operation
5.0 Review the status of, or changes in, the
regulatory climate (such as accreditation
standards) that may have a bearing on
future operation
5.0 Define, communicate, and facilitate
attainment of the desired future of the
organization
5.0 Choose appropriate strategies and plan
actions in a 1- to 5-year time frame that
can lead to achieving the organization’s
vision and mission
5.0 Implement the strategies and objectives of
the long-term plan and develop
mechanisms to assess the outcomes
5.0 Formulate specific, measurable, attainable,
relevant, and timely objectives to carry
out the planned actions
5.0 Analyze the nature of one’s competition in
relation to providing the desired services
5.0 Proceed with plans or activities when faced
with an uncertain environment or limited
information
5.0 Examine the relationship between internal
strengths and weaknesses of the
organization as well as external
opportunities and threats in the
environment to identify possible
organizational responses
5.0 Review the status, or changes in, values,
vision, mission, or policy articulated by
the organization within which the
practice functions that may affect the
relationship of the practice to the parent
organization
March 2007
 Administration and Management Skills Needed by 2010

Appendix.
Continued

Category/Skill Groupa Skill Median Definition

Score

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Organizational performance analysis 5.0 Analyze performance factors to compare
present and past performance of the
organization or subunits
Market conditions analysis 4.0 Assess the condition of the current
marketplace in terms of available
resources, competition, consumers, and
the state of the business environment
Marketing strategy 4.0 Develop a marketing strategy based on
product, pricing, promotion, place, and
packaging that will meet consumers’
needs and demands
Market share and competitive 4.0 Measure the proportion of the market
position analysis served by the practice as compared with
the competition and identify the factors
within your organization that distinguish
you from your competitors
Organizational design modification 4.0 Modify the organizational structure and
reporting relationships in response to the
identification of a performance gap,
changes in status of the organization, or
its relationship to the environment
Organizational change 4.0 Participate in changing the nature of
services delivered, how the organization
delivers its services, or how the
organization is organized in response to
environmental needs
Environmental assessment Community analysis 5.0 Review the status of, or changes in,
demands at the community level that
may have a bearing on future operation
Political analysis 4.0 Review the status of, or changes in, the
political climate that may have a bearing
on future operation
Societal analysis 4.0 Review the status of, or changes in,
societal demands that may have a
bearing on future operation
Historical analysis 4.0 Review historical data about the business
and the context in which it operates that
may have a bearing on future operation
Economic analysis 4.0 Review the status of, or changes in, the
economic climate that may have a
bearing on future operation
Legal analysis 4.0 Review the status of, or changes, in the
legal climate that may have a bearing on
future operation
Systems review 4.0 Analyze sets of related and interdependent
parts of the organizational environment
that may affect the operation of the
physical therapist practice
a
Skill groups as determined from factor analysis. Skills listed in order of median score within skill group. ICD-9⫽International Classification of Diseases, 9th
revision, HCPCS⫽Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System, CPT⫽Current Procedural Terminology.

March 2007 Volume 87 Number 3 Physical Therapy f 281