“Adequate Patient Records”- Legible records that contain at a minimum:

• Sufficient information to identify the patient;
• An evaluation of objective findings;
• A diagnosis;
• A plan of care;
• A treatment record; and
• A discharge plan.

“Approved Education Program”- A program for the education and training of physical therapists or physical therapist assistants accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education of the American Physical Therapy Association or by equivalent standards established by the Board.

“Audit”- The selection of licensees or certificate holders for verification of satisfactory completion of continuing competency requirements during a specified time period.

“Board” - The Nebraska Board of Physical Therapy.

“Certification Examination”- The National Physical Therapist Assistant Examination and Jurisprudence (NE LAW) Examination approved by the Department upon the recommendation of the Board.

“Continuing Competency Activities”- Appropriate learning experiences physical therapists and physical therapist assistants undertake to expand their scope of knowledge beyond the initial preparation for the profession of physical therapy.

“Direct Supervision” - Supervision in which the supervising practitioner is physically present and immediately available and does not include supervision provided by means of telecommunication.

“Evaluation” - The process of making clinical judgments based on data gathered from examination of a patient.

“General Supervision” - Supervision either onsite or by means of telecommunication.

“Hour”- As it relates to continuing education, an hour is at least 60 minutes of participation in an organized learning experience otherwise known as a “contact hour.”

• One (1) academic semester hour is equal to fifteen (15) contact hours. An approved three (3) credit hour course provides 45 contact hours of continuing education credit; and
• One (1) academic quarter hour is equal to ten (10) contact hours. An approved 3 credit hour course provides 30 contact hours of continuing education credit.

“Intervention”- A therapeutic procedure defined by the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) manual of the American Medical Association.

“Jurisdiction of the United States” - Any state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any American territory.

“Jurisprudence (NE Law) examination” - The Nebraska Physical Therapy Law Examination covering the laws governing the practice of physical therapy in Nebraska. This examination covers the regulations relating to the licensure of physical therapy, 172 NAC 137; the Physical Therapy Practice Act, Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 38-2901 to 38-2929; the regulations relating to the Uniform Credentialing Act, 172 NAC 10; the Uniform Credentialing Act, Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 38-101 to 38-1,142; and the statutes relating to medical records, Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 71-8401 to 71-8407.

“Licensure Examination”- The National Physical Therapist Examination and Jurisprudence (NE LAW) Examination approved by the Department on the recommendation of the Board.

“Mobilization or Manual Therapy” - A group of techniques comprising a continuum of skilled passive movements to the joints or related soft tissues, or both, throughout the normal physiological range of motion that are applied at varying speeds and amplitudes, without limitation.

“Non-Treatment Related Tasks” - Clerical, housekeeping, facility maintenance, or patient transportation services related to the practice of physical therapy.

“Physical Therapist” - A person licensed to practice physical therapy in Nebraska.

“Physical Therapist Assistant” - A person certified as a physical therapist assistant in Nebraska.

“Physical Therapy” - Examining, evaluating, and testing individuals with mechanical, physiological, and developmental impairments, functional limitations, and disabilities or other conditions related to health and movement and, through analysis of the evaluative process, developing a plan of therapeutic intervention and prognosis while assessing the ongoing effects of the intervention.

“Physical Therapy Aide” - A person who is trained under the direction of a physical therapist and who performs treatment-related and non-treatment-related tasks.

“Plan of Care”- A plan of therapeutic intervention utilizing current standards of care.

“Practice Site”- The location where the physical therapist provides physical therapy services.

“Satellite Office”- A practice site operating without the presence of a physical therapist.

“Semester Credit Hour”- A semester credit hour must include at a minimum:

• Fifteen (15) hours of lecture;
• Thirty (30) hours of laboratory; or
• Forty-eight (48) hours of clinical education.