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Home / Blog / Occupational Therapist vs. Physical Therapist

Occupational therapy vs. physical therapy

Occupational and physical therapies are two types of rehabilitation treatments for patients with a variety of conditions but are frequently confused with each other. The name ‘occupational therapy’ can lead to more confusion—but in this context, ‘occupation’ refers to a task that someone completes rather than their profession.

Both therapies aim to restore patient mobility to improve their quality of life, and both often use manual, hands-on techniques to achieve their goals. They may also be used in tandem for patients that could benefit from the combined expertise of both specialties. However, these two therapies focus on treating very different aspects of our physical and mental health.

Differentiating between the two

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A professional OT’s take on occupational therapy vs physical therapy

Keri DeGroot, an occupational therapist and assistant teaching professor with the University of Washington’s Division of Occupational Therapy, worked alongside physical therapists throughout her career. She defines occupational therapy through the Person-Environment-Occupation model and uses it to distinguish occupational from physical therapy.

“There’s a framework out there called the Person-Environment-Occupation [PEO] framework and I think that’s the best way to describe it and why we’re a little bit different than physical therapy.

You have the Person that encompasses strength and balance and thinking ability and everything [about a person]. And then the Environment, what’s going on around that person. And then the Occupation, the actual task or goal of what they’re trying to do,” she said.

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What is physical therapy?

At its core, physical therapy helps people improve their physical mobility. This may be necessary for people recovering from an injury or surgery, managing a disability, or for people who want to take preventative measures against future injuries. In general, physical therapy usually focuses on our gross motor skills—using our torso, arms and legs for “whole body” functions like walking, running, jumping, and more. 

Physical therapy mostly focuses on the ‘Person’ spoke of the PEO framework.

“Physical therapy does some environment and some occupation, but really their main focus is going to be those person factors. How can we rehab the injury? How can we get better balance? How can we change what we’re doing at the person level, and maybe a little bit with the environment by adding a cane or a walker,” DeGroot said.

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What is occupational therapy?

“I like to define occupational therapy as a partner or coach that helps you do what you need and want to be able to do,” DeGroot said. 

Occupational therapy aims to help patients improve mobility and function to make it easier to execute the daily tasks of living, such as feeding, dressing or cleaning oneself, writing, using a mobility device, and much more. These kinds of activities generally focus on one’s fine motor skills—the use of the muscles in our hands, eyes, and other small muscle groups—as opposed to our gross motor skills.

“Occupational therapy basically just says, ‘What do you need and want to be able to do?’ Let’s evaluate what’s in the way of that and let’s intervene where we need to intervene.” DeGroot said that as an occupational therapist, she may be able to help someone without even addressing the Person aspect of the PEO framework but could still change the task (Occupation) or the environment to make it possible for the patient to participate in what they want to do.

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Do physical and occupational therapists work together?

Although their scope of practice varies, you find OTs and PTs working together in just about any medical setting. 

“From the initial hospitalization, inpatient rehab, skilled nursing facilities, outpatient rehab or retirement centers—all of those environments you’re going to see PTs and OTs working really closely together,” DeGroot said.

Some patients benefit from the help of both a physical and occupational therapist, such as people experiencing injuries or afflictions of the brain. PTs and OTs can collaborate to create treatment plans addressing their individual goals. For example, a patient recovering from a stroke may need a physical therapist’s help to relearn how to walk or climb stairs. An occupational therapist may help that same patient with relearning how to feed themselves, get dressed, and do other self-care tasks.

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Salary and career outlook for OTs and PTs

Physical and occupational therapist salaries are comparable, though the median annual salary for PTs is approximately $10,000 more than the median annual salary for OTs.

Your particular salary as a PT or OT depends on numerous additional factors such as location, experience, education level, type of employer, and more.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that the employment of physical and occupational therapists will grow 10.9% and 13.8% respectively through 2034, much faster than the average across all occupations. This may be to account for aging generations that are living longer and living more active lives, thus needing the services of both kinds of therapists more.