Case of the Month
The Case
The College began an investigation into a physiotherapist who appeared to be misrepresenting an athletic therapist as a registered physiotherapist, and inappropriately billing services as physiotherapy.
The physiotherapist owned the clinic where the athletic therapist worked as a physiotherapist assistant (PTA). However, on its website, the clinic listed the athletic therapist on a page titled “Physiotherapists.”
When a College investigator booked an appointment with the athletic therapist, the clinic’s receptionist told them the first session would need to be billed as athletic therapy since it was being provided by an athletic therapist. All future appointments with the athletic therapist could then be billed as physiotherapy under the clinic owner’s name and registration number, the receptionist said.
The investigator, and other patients who saw the athletic therapist over a period of around 10 months, had their initial appointment billed as an athletic therapy assessment. Subsequent appointments were submitted to third-party insurers as physiotherapy treatments using the physiotherapist’s name and registration number, even though the physiotherapist never assessed the patients and didn’t develop their treatment plans.
The physiotherapist said they believed they were following the Working with Physiotherapist Assistants Standard because they met with the athletic therapist weekly to discuss the results of the assessments and review treatment plans.
The Standards
The Working with Physiotherapist Assistants Standard sets out the rules for physiotherapists who work with PTAs in their practice. According to the standard, physiotherapy assessments cannot be delegated to PTAs and must be performed by a physiotherapist.
In this case, because the initial assessments were not done by a physiotherapist, the athletic therapist was not acting as a PTA during the follow-up appointments. The services provided during those appointments cannot be considered physiotherapy and shouldn’t have been billed using the PT’s name and registration number.
Furthermore, by advertising the athletic therapist as a physiotherapist on the clinic’s website, the physiotherapist was holding the athletic therapist out as a PT. As specified in the Restricted Titles, Credentials and Specialty Designations Standard, it’s illegal for non-registrants of the College to use the title of physiotherapist in any way, and registrants must not help non-registrants claim to be physiotherapists.
The Outcome
The physiotherapist’s certificate of registration was suspended until they completed courses on professionalism and ethics. All costs associated with the courses were paid by the PT. The physiotherapist was also required to review College resources on ethics and business practices, and the Working with Physiotherapist Assistants Standard.
Information about the outcome of the case and the PT’s suspension will remain on the College’s website and Public Register permanently.
Working with Physiotherapist Assistants Standard
Restricted Titles, Credentials and Specialty Designations Standard
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