Name: Doug Allen
Position: Physical therapy director
Location: Alliance Physical Therapy
First job: On a hot tar roofing crew in California
Best part of the job: Working with people and seeing the positive results of working with them. "Recently I had a gentlemen who was a dentist who had a shoulder problem. As we kept working with him, he was able to use his arm more in his job. Late one night he sent me an email, and was just ecstatic that after his treatment session that day, he was able to reach above his head and touch above the door at his house. He found that quite successful, and we both celebrated his ability to get his arm up on his own."
Worst part of the job: Dealing with regulatory issues. "No one likes that - insurance limitations is kind of a common theme throughout health care ... when you know people need certain care and you can't provide it to them.
What challenges him: "The challenge is staying organized, scheduling patients to where you can have good hands-on care with them - keeping that momentum and efficiency running through the entire day, having that well-oiled machine is a challenge on a day-to-day basis."
What he's learned: "Being very truthful and having good integrity when you work with your patients. You always see the best outcomes that way, and they have good buy-in when they know you're trying to help them. In turn, I use those same principles trying to deal with people in general in my personal life. The shortcuts never work very well."
How to make a career of it: A master's degree in physical therapy is necessary, though Allen said the industry is moving more toward having doctoral degree requirements.