Departments within hospitals or freestanding clinics operated by hospitals or hospital systems that are designed for the diagnosis and treatment of people with health problems who do not currently require a bed or admission for overnight care. Outpatient departments offer a wide range of treatment services, diagnostic tests and minor surgical procedures.

Programs that are designed to help patients who have autism or another disability or have been disabled by a stroke, heart attack, arthritis, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, hip replacements or other surgeries, a chronic disease or other illnesses or injuries to restore or reinforce fine motor and other performance skills that are essential for activities of daily living. Therapy may include tasks to strengthen weak muscles and improve such skills as coordination, visual perception, body mechanics, equilibrium and endurance for standing and sitting. Practitioners helping people with autism may adjust tasks and conditions to match their needs and abilities which may include adapting the environment to minimize external distractions, finding specially designed computer software that facilitates communication, or identifying skills they need to accomplish tasks.

Programs that evaluate joint motion, muscle strength and endurance, heart and lung function and the ability of people to perform activities of daily living; and utilize the therapeutic properties of exercise, heat, cold, electricity, ultraviolet, water, manipulation and massage to improve circulation, strengthen muscles, reduce pain and restore mobility to people who have been disabled by a stroke, arthritis, back or spinal cord injuries or other debilitating conditions. Physical therapists practice in a variety of settings including hospitals, private offices, outpatient clinics, rehabilitation centers, developmental centers, home health agencies, schools and pediatric centers.

Programs that offer individual or group therapy sessions which focus on the remediation of specific articulation problems in which speech sounds are omitted, replaced by substitute sounds or distorted; voice problems in which pitch, loudness or quality of voice is affected; or stuttering.