Questions about salary,condition and tatus of Physiotherapy

Hi Physio peoples..
I would like to know amount of salary that physio earn through their careers in New zealand,Australia and USA. and also outlook and status of physiotherapy profession.....

where I am from,s korea. physio is not really regarded as a good job.students who get low scores over high schools usally enter universities and study physiotherpy for 3~4 years.. physios in s korea can not open their private clinics as it is banned by govt and only allow to work under doc's controll and average income they earn....roughly 19000USD for gradute, 23000USD for 5years experience, 26000USD for 10 years experience...it does not really increase anymore as docs in korea want to save expenses, and kick out experinced physios and employ newly qaulifyed physios... this bad cycle carrys on unless physios are employed by good and huge hospitals and it is very competitive to get in too,,chances are very rare, about 1in20 (i heard in japan, the situation is the same as korea)
....however i know that physio in usa and oz can open a private clinics....I would like to get some ideas of how many physio out of ten actually open a private clinic,,,obviously not everyone woould open private clinics and earn fortunes... and question obove...

i would like to read ur opinions as you guys are physios,,, before i wrote this, i went to some korean agencies that deals with studying abroad,,they say that physio in OZ and USA, they earn heaps of money and they are regarded as almost like doctors(highly respected career)...... you see,,,these agencies's first goal is to send students like me who are interested in studying abroad so that they can earn money...... i can not really trust them so help me.....

thanks

Hi,
I have just "googled" some info for you in regards to NZ conditions:
1) Annual workforce survery 2007 (done in 2008): 1999 Physios registered, of which 465 are self-employed in private practice, 395 employed in private practice, 500 in DHBs (= public hospital) and the rest works elsewhere (too much detail).
2) Average salary for Physios in NZ is around NZ$ 42.600, with the average gross salary being $65.000. That's a very high estimate in my opinion, and would account for a lot of Senior Physios (5 years or more) working in private practice.

3) status: in NZ, Physios are independant and autonomous, which means, that we are trained to do patient analysis and evaluation ourselves, hence determining the amount and frequency of treatment. We can accept patients, who self refer, but are commonly referred patients by their doctors or Insurance providers. In private practice, patients have to either pay for the treatment themselves, or are covered by their insurance. Treatments in public and private hospitals are paid for by government funding. We work interdisciplinary together with Doctors, Nurses, Occupational Therapists, Speech Therapists, Psychologists, Behavioural Optometrists, Social Workers, etc. the list is endless and all are autonomous within their chosen profession.

It is not a profession to make the rich list, but you can live nicely of the salary/ wages.

Hope this helps,
regards,
Fyzzio

Originally Posted by Fyzzio Hi, I have just "googled" some info for you in regards to NZ conditions: 1) Annual workforce survery 2007 (done in 2008): 1999 Physios registered, of which 465 are self-employed in private practice, 395 employed in private practice, 500 in DHBs (= public hospital) and the rest works elsewhere (too much detail). 2) Average salary for Physios in NZ is around NZ$ 42.600, with the average gross salary being $65.000. That's a very high estimate in my opinion, and would account for a lot of Senior Physios (5 years or more) working in private practice. 3) status: in NZ, Physios are independant and autonomous, which means, that we are trained to do patient analysis and evaluation ourselves, hence determining the amount and frequency of treatment. We can accept patients, who self refer, but are commonly referred patients by their doctors or Insurance providers. In private practice, patients have to either pay for the treatment themselves, or are covered by their insurance. Treatments in public and private hospitals are paid for by government funding. We work interdisciplinary together with Doctors, Nurses, Occupational Therapists, Speech Therapists, Psychologists, Behavioural Optometrists, Social Workers, etc. the list is endless and all are autonomous within their chosen profession. It is not a profession to make the rich list, but you can live nicely of the salary/ wages. Hope this helps, regards, Fyzzio

thanks a lot for your help, Fyzzio
if anyone would like to give me more or different opinions about situation in Australia,usa and New zealand....i would appreciate

i am actually a bit disapointed with the averge salary that physio earn....40000dallars as my international agency told me that it is a career with high income..so
i was expecting that physios like 5to7years would earn 80000~100000 easily....
though is it still true that average self-employed physios earn 6digit salary???....i am sorry that i ask about this difficult?subject but i need to know exactly as my fees for uni in New Zealand, Australia and usa are over 20000dallars per 1year futhuremore i would intend to finish untill master degree..

waiting more ops...
thanks

Hi kimdw925,

I am Physiotherapist working in New Zealand public hospital. The salary scale pointed out by Fyzzio is outdated. Salary can vary between public and private sector. For working in public hospital you earn between 4,4000 (as a new grad) to 90,000 (senior). As for private sector you can easily earn over 65,000. I had colleagues working in private clinic (for someone) earns well over 100,000. As for self-employed (owner) you can make >150,000 a year.

It sounds like your looking for a profession into money. I don't think any health profession would suit you, if you only just in for money. You can earn heaps more money if your in business sector.

For me working in health sector I am not into money, I just love the profession that's able to make a big change to someone's life and getting substainable income.

Great prospect ... can you please tell us which DHB you're talking about. To get 90.000 in Auckland, you'll have to be in a Management position (i.e. Team Leader), not a physio position and the 100.000 in private practice are not a common occurance. I know someone, who earns that much, but works 60 - 65 hrs per week and is contracted = no holdiday or sick leave/ pay.
And maybe, you could also dwell on the termination of the EPN contract, let's see who still earns 100.000 after November.
My information was from a website. It stated that the average gross salary is $65.000. So, sorry if it's outdated - although I can't believe that.

However, I totally agree with the rest. Physio is also not a profession where you're learning is completed after you hold your degree certificate, in fact, that's when learning really starts. So, be prepared to work hard, to learn until you retire, to earn enough money to provide for an average lifestyle and to develop a passion for whatever area you'll end up specialising in.

Cheers,
Physio

[quote=Fyzzio;29050]Great prospect ... can you please tell us which DHB you're talking about. To get 90.000 in Auckland, you'll have to be in a Management position (i.e. Team Leader), not a physio position and the 100.000 in private practice are not a common occurance. I know someone, who earns that much, but works 60 - 65 hrs per week and is contracted = no holdiday or sick leave/ pay.
And maybe, you could also dwell on the termination of the EPN contract, let's see who still earns 100.000 after November.
My information was from a website. It stated that the average gross salary is $65.000. So, sorry if it's outdated - although I can't believe that.





I am very confused right now......... two very different ops from two physios....anyway thanks heaps for ur ops.... PHYSIO BOB,,, I am still waiting for U!!!! .. need help. cheers

Originally Posted by Fyzzio Great prospect ... can you please tell us which DHB you're talking about. To get 90.000 in Auckland, you'll have to be in a Management position (i.e. Team Leader), not a physio position and the 100.000 in private practice are not a common occurance. I know someone, who earns that much, but works 60 - 65 hrs per week and is contracted = no holdiday or sick leave/ pay. And maybe, you could also dwell on the termination of the EPN contract, let's see who still earns 100.000 after November. My information was from a website. It stated that the average gross salary is $65.000. So, sorry if it's outdated - although I can't believe that. However, I totally agree with the rest. Physio is also not a profession where you're learning is completed after you hold your degree certificate, in fact, that's when learning really starts. So, be prepared to work hard, to learn until you retire, to earn enough money to provide for an average lifestyle and to develop a passion for whatever area you'll end up specialising in. Cheers, Physio

Yes. It's more in management role like sector head, professional leader. Plus the weekend work and on-call rate you get (double the rate of standard hourly salary).

It really depends on what clinic u work for. I know a friend work in non-EPN contract clinic, he charge $150 dollars for first Assessment and $90 dollars for follow-up. They charge high fees, because they can deliver the quality service to their client and people do go back. I know a few Physio is happy with termination with EPN contract. EPN downgrade the quality of the profession, with lots of new grads with no exp opening up their clinic. It's about how you value the service you offer.

hi i am a newbie here. i was glad that i go there as a member

The United States Department of Labor's website (bls.gov) is very useful when trying to learn about different professions. It gives salary, training and licensing requirements. Just type "physical therapy" into the bls search engine. Entry into a MPT or DPT program in the U.S is extremely competitive...some say more difficult than getting into medical school. It is a pretty prestigious career-I'd say on the same level as a physicians assistant or nurse practioner...but, unlike these professions, therapists do not have to work under supervision. Physical therapists in the U.S can have successful independent practices...but are typically dependent on referrals from medical doctors to collect insurance reimbursement. This can differ from state to state. Hope this helps!