Grant of $40,000 to a USA investigator affiliated with a qualifying institution or organization for research related to physical therapy in primary care settings. Funding is intended for studies related to access to care, utilization of physical therapy by primary care clinicians, and implementation strategies.
Areas of Study
Health services research (HSR) is a multidisciplinary field that investigates how social factors, financing systems, organizational structures and processes, health technologies, and personal behaviors affect access to health care, the quality and cost of health care, and outcomes of care. HSR in physical therapy provides evidence to inform the decision making of clinicians, patients, policymakers, and healthcare providers and payers that improves safety, timeliness, effectiveness, efficiency, and accessibility of physical therapy care.
Proposed studies may focus on physical therapy utilization and access to care, comparative clinical effectiveness, cost-effectiveness,2 and/or implementation strategies. Proposals should use rigorous health services research designs and methodologies. Proposed studies may include primary data collection or use secondary analysis of large data sets, such as electronic healthcare records, national survey data, insurance claims databases, or federal and state healthcare claims databases.
Funding Priorities Proposed studies must address one or more of the priorities found in the 2023 APTA Research Agenda. Here are the priorities listed in the HSR section of the agenda:
- Determine the role and value of physical therapists as movement specialists at the primary entry point of care and identify the associated privileges (e.g., direct access and prescriptive authority) on patient outcomes.
- Examine access and payment barriers to physical therapy as a primary care service.
- Compare the effectiveness and/or cost-effectiveness of physical therapy delivered via different care models (e.g., concurrent treatments, group therapy, and one-on-one).
- Examine value (e.g., cost-effectiveness, impact on longer-term clinical outcomes, and quality of life) of physical therapy compared with non-rehabilitation treatments for common clinical conditions and/or specific patient populations.
- Explore the impact of various payment models and insurance payment policies on access to care, patient and clinical outcomes, and downstream costs and utilization.
- Examine costs and benefits of various technologies to improve health care delivery and decrease administrative burden.
- Examine the impact of physical therapist services on downstream health care utilization.
- Examine effective ways to organize, finance, and deliver high-quality physical therapy care in underserved rural and urban population settings.
- Explore methods for increasing access to physical therapist services within different socioeconomic groups.
- Explore how the attitudes and beliefs of patients, care partners, and significant others about physical therapy affect patient utilization, participation, and outcomes.
- Evaluate what types of marketing and outreach impact consumer choice to engage in physical therapy (e.g., social media, wellness fairs, and public relations campaigns).
For additional priorities, see: https://foundation4pt.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/2025-PT-HSR-guidelines_Apr15_FINAL.pdf#page=4
