Physical Therapist - Acute Care, PRN

Discover Vanderbilt Health: With eight hospitals and over 180 clinics, we are the region’s largest comprehensive academic health system. Vanderbilt Health has a long tradition of providing world-class care to the people of the Mid-South, living out our mission of moving medicine forward through preeminent programs in patient care, education and research. Here you’ll find a spirit of collaboration and a supportive community where your expertise is valued, your knowledge expanded and your uniqueness celebrated. We are committed to fostering an environment where talented, compassionate people are united in bringing the most advanced care to our neighbors throughout the region.

Organization:

Acute Rehab PT/OT 3

Job Summary:

JOB SUMMARY
Provides physical therapy services to patients who have impairments, functional limitations, disabilities, or changes in physical function and health status resulting from injury, disease or other causes under occasional guidance. Actively collaborates with the health care/educational team to meet patient care, outcomes and system improvement objectives.

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Physical Therapist - Acute Care (PRN)

Vanderbilt University Medical Center | Nashville, TN
PRN (As Needed)

PRN Flexibility with Meaningful Clinical Impact

Looking for the flexibility of PRN work without sacrificing clinical complexity, professional growth, or purpose? Vanderbilt Health is seeking an experienced Acute Care Physical Therapist to join one of the nation's leading academic health systems.

Whether you're maintaining your acute care expertise, supplementing your current role, or seeking a schedule that better fits your lifestyle, you'll have the opportunity to make a meaningful impact while caring for some of healthcare's most medically complex patients.

PRN Commitment

• Minimum availability of 2 shifts per month
• 1 hard-to-staff day every 6 months

Scheduling Expectations

• PRN therapists self-select available shifts based on department needs.
• Opportunities are available across weekdays and weekends.
• This role is not intended as a weekends-only position; maintaining some weekday availability helps support orientation, team integration, and ongoing scheduling opportunities.

Flexible Orientation Experience

PRN therapists provide available training dates in 8-hour blocks, allowing for a more flexible onboarding process that accommodates varying schedules rather than requiring a traditional consecutive Monday through Friday commitment.

Practice Where Expertise Matters Most

As part of Vanderbilt Health, you'll work at a Level 1 Trauma Center and the nation's largest transplant center by volume, collaborating with nationally recognized physicians, nurses, and rehabilitation professionals.

Our Acute Care Rehabilitation team provides services throughout Vanderbilt University Hospital, including:

• Trauma Services
• Transplant Services
• Burn Center
• Emergency Services
• Women's Health/OB
• Neurosciences
• Cardiovascular Services
• Medical and Surgical ICUs
• Specialty Medicine Services

You'll join one of the region's largest acute care rehabilitation teams, working alongside approximately 130 rehabilitation professionals dedicated to exceptional patient outcomes.

Together, the team manages more than 140 new rehabilitation consults daily and provides care for over 550 patients each day.

Your Impact

As a PRN Acute Care Physical Therapist, you will:

• Perform evidence-based evaluations and treatment interventions for hospitalized patients with complex medical and surgical diagnoses.
• Develop individualized treatment plans that promote mobility, safety, functional recovery, and independence.
• Collaborate with physicians, nurses, occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, case managers, and other healthcare professionals.
• Educate patients and caregivers regarding mobility strategies, equipment recommendations, fall prevention, and discharge planning.
• Apply strong clinical reasoning to assess patient progress and modify treatment plans as patient needs evolve.
• Document care in accordance with hospital, regulatory, and professional standards.
• Contribute to a culture of clinical excellence, teamwork, and compassionate patient-centered care.

Why Acute Care Therapists Choose Vanderbilt Health

Practice at the Top of Your License

Therapists are empowered to utilize advanced clinical reasoning and play a meaningful role in patient care decisions.

Diverse and Complex Patient Populations

Gain exposure to trauma, transplant, critical care, neuroscience, burn, cardiology, specialty medicine, and surgical services.

Collaborative Team Environment

Work alongside highly respected physicians, nurses, therapists, and healthcare professionals committed to exceptional outcomes.

Academic Medical Center Experience

Be part of a health system recognized for innovation, research, education, and evidence-based practice.

Make a Difference Every Shift

Help patients regain mobility, maximize independence, and safely transition to the next level of care.

Qualifications

• Licensed Physical Therapist (or license-eligible) in Tennessee
• Acute care or hospital-based experience preferred
• Strong clinical reasoning and communication skills
• Ability to work effectively within interdisciplinary teams
• Commitment to exceptional patient-centered care

Ready to Make an Impact?

If you're seeking a PRN opportunity that offers both flexibility and purpose, Vanderbilt Health provides the opportunity to care for complex patients, collaborate with exceptional colleagues, and make a meaningful difference with every shift.

Apply today and put your acute care expertise to work where it matters most.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
• Analyzes comprehensive information from formal and informal assessment that is pertinent to the patient's care and management to determine a rehabilitation treatment diagnosis.
• Collaborates with stakeholders in establishing the plan of care, coordinates and implements care delivery while anticipating patient care needs across the rehabilitation continuum.
• Applies appropriate, evidence-based interventions to ensure effective outcomes and re-evaluates performance to assess patient's progress towards goals.
• Employs strategies to promote successful return to home, community, and school/vocational environments.
• The responsibilities listed are a general overview of the position and additional duties may be assigned.

TECHNICAL CAPABILITIES
• Rehab Therapist Patient Documentation (Novice): Demonstrates proficiency in documentation practices. Documents in the appropriate templates and utilizes only approved abbreviations within patient documentation. Meets institutional standards for quality and timeliness of documentation.
• Treatment Planning & Goal Setting (Novice): Demonstrates sufficient proficiency in developing a plan of care that incorporates treatment interventions focused on meeting objective goals. Develops and documents patient focused short and long term goals that are functional and measurable. Identifies the need for and referral to other services, as needed.
• Rehabilitation Therapist Patient Evaluation (Novice): Demonstrates proficiency in evaluating patients with physical deficits including impairments, developmental disabilities, functional limitations, disabilities, or changes in physical function by obtaining information pertinent to the assessment and administering and scoring standardized tests and objective measures of deficit areas. Selects appropriate measures and performs a functional assessment to document patient's status requiring skilled therapy. Interprets the results of the assessment and their significance to the patient, family, referring physician and other members of the health care team.
• Treatment Implementation (Novice): Demonstrates proficiency in providing treatment consistent with physician prescription and established plan of care. Able to modify treatment plan as needed to demonstrate provision of skilled therapy services including progression of treatment throughout course of care, and revision of treatment interventions of goals not met. May supervise and direct certified athletic trainers (PT only), physical therapist / occupational therapist assistants, technicians and volunteers and students. Selects and follows correct protocol for care and utilize evidence based treatments. Has completed at least one year of clinical experience in treatment implementation.
• Physical/Occupational Therapist Patient Education (Novice): Demonstrates proficiency in communicating functional impact of assessment findings, treatment interventions, treatment planning diagnosis, and disease process. Considers the communication needs/level of understanding of audience and may share appropriate information/literature. May supervise, educate and train students from professional programs of physical therapy, occupational therapy and athletic training.

Allied health is among the fastest growing occupations in healthcare today. This area can be defined as credentialed professionals who perform supportive, diagnostic, and therapeutic health care services to promote health and prevent disease in a variety of settings.

These areas are crucial to Vanderbilt Health’s reputation for excellence in these areas that has made us a major center for patient referrals from throughout the Mid-South.

Each year, people throughout Tennessee and the southeast choose Vanderbilt Health for their health care because of our leadership in medical science and our dedication to treating patients with dignity and compassion.

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Core Accountabilities:

Organizational Impact: Executes job responsibilities with the understanding of how output would affect and impact other areas related to own job area/team with occasional guidance. Problem Solving/ Complexity of work: Analyzes moderately complex problems using technical experience and judgment. Breadth of Knowledge: Has expanded knowledge gained through experience within a professional area. Team Interaction: Provides informal guidance and support to team members.

Core Capabilities :

Supporting Colleagues:- Develops Self and Others: Invests time, energy, and enthusiasm in developing self/others to help improve performance e and gain knowledge in new areas.- Builds and Maintains Relationships: Maintains regular contact with key colleagues and stakeholders using formal and informal opportunities to expand and strengthen relationships.- Communicates Effectively: Recognizes group interactions and modifies one's own communication style to suit different situations and audiences. Delivering Excellent Services:- Serves Others with Compassion: Seeks to understand current and future needs of relevant stakeholders and customizes services to better address them.- Solves Complex Problems: Approaches problems from different angles; Identifies new possibilities to interpret opportunities and develop concrete solutions.- Offers Meaningful Advice and Support: Provides ongoing support and coaching in a constructive manner to increase employees' effectiveness. Ensuring High Quality: - Performs Excellent Work: Engages regularly in formal and informal dialogue about quality; directly addresses quality issues promptly.- Ensures Continuous Improvement: Applies various learning experiences by looking beyond symptoms to uncover underlying causes of problems and identifies ways to resolve them. - Fulfills Safety and Regulatory Requirements: Understands all aspects of providing a safe environment and performs routine safety checks to prevent safety hazards from occurring. Managing Resources Effectively: - Demonstrates Accountability: Demonstrates a sense of ownership, focusing on and driving critical issues to closure.- Stewards Organizational Resources: Applies understanding of the departmental work to effectively manage resources for a department/area.- Makes Data Driven Decisions: Demonstrates strong understanding of the information or data to identify and elevate opportunities. Fostering Innovation:- Generates New Ideas: Proactively identifies new ideas/opportunities from multiple sources or methods to improve processes beyond conventional approaches.- Applies Technology: Demonstrates an enthusiasm for learning new technologies, tools, and procedures to address short-term challenges.- Adapts to Change: Views difficult situations and/or problems as opportunities for improvement; actively embraces change instead of emphasizing negative elements.

Position Qualifications:

Responsibilities:

Certifications:

LIC-Physical Therapy License - Tennessee

Work Experience:

Relevant Work Experience

Experience Level :

Less than 1 year

Education:

Bachelor's

This role offers the opportunity to make a meaningful impact within Vanderbilt Health, supported by a comprehensive benefits package which may include health, disability, retirement and/or wellness offerings to enhance your well-being and professional growth.

Vanderbilt Health is committed to fostering an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and is committed to the principles of equal opportunity.  EOE/Vets/Disabled.