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First Known Therapists
Physicians like Hippocrates and later Galenus are believed to have been the first practitioners of physical therapy, advocating massage, manual therapy techniques and hydrotherapy to treat people in. -
Earliest Documented Therapist
The earliest documented origins of actual physical therapy as a professional group date back to Per Henrik Ling, “Father of Swedish Gymnastics,” who founded the Royal Central Institute of Gymnastics (RCIG) in 1813 for massage, manipulation, and exercise. -
Fist British to found Physiotherapy
Other countries soon followed. In 1894 four nurses in Great Britain formed the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy -
During WW1 women were recruited as therapists
During the First World War women were recruited to work with and restore physical function to injured soldiers, and the field of physical therapy was institutionalized. In 1918 the term "Reconstruction Aide" was used to refer to individuals practicing physical therapy. -
Mary McMillan founded the APTA
The first physical therapy research was published in the United States in March 1921 in "The PT Review." In the same year, Mary McMillan organized the Physical Therapy Association (now called the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). -
Code of ethics was first established
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In the 1940's therapy started to consist more of exercise
Treatment through the 1940s primarily consisted of exercise, massage, and traction. Manipulative procedures to the spine and extremity joints began to be practiced, especially in the British Commonwealth countries -
Physical Therapists technicians became known as PT
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PT becomes private practice
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Physical Therapy Assistants arrive
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Advances in technology meant advances for PT's
In the 1980's, the explosion of technology and computers led to more technical advances in rehabilitation. Some of these advances have continued to grow, with computerized modalities such as ultrasound, electric stimulators, and iontophoresis with the latest advances in therapeutic cold laser -
Norwegian therapist, Freddy Kaltenborne helped create the AAOMPT
The 1990's brought much attention to manual therapy, with formal residency programs becoming more numerous. During the summer of 1991, Norwegian manual therapist Freddy Kaltenborne helped create the American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapy (AAOMPT).