Our Qualifications

In order to practice physiotherapy in Canada, physiotherapists must be registered with the College of Physiotherapists in their province/territory. It is illegal to practice physiotherapy without being registered or licensed and there are laws governing the granting and removal of a physiotherapist’s registration. The title ‘physiotherapist’ or ‘physical therapist’ is protected which means that to call oneself a physiotherapist one must have an active registration in that specific province/territory.

Our physiotherapist’s have a number of letters after their name denoting their undergraduate degrees and post graduate qualifications. Please find below a list of qualifications and what they mean:

BSCPT: BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN PHYSIOTHERAPY

This is the graduate qualification a person must have to practice physiotherapy once they are registered with the regulatory board or College of Physiotherapists in their province/territory. In Canada, this was the only route to practice physiotherapy prior to the inception of the Masters program in the early 2000’s.

FCAMPT: FELLOW OF THE CANADIAN ACADEMY OF MANIPULATIVE PHYSICAL THERAPY

FCAMPT therapists have completed extensive advanced post graduate education in the area of orthopaedics and have achieved internationally recognized qualifications in hands on manual and manipulative therapy.

DPT: DOCTOR OF PHYSICAL THERAPY

This program has been recently brought into Canada and is offered as a one year post graduate program. In the US, the DPT program is now the current entry level degree to practice physical therapy.

MMT: MASTER OF MANUAL THERAPY

This post graduate physiotherapy program teaches advanced clinical reasoning, diagnosis, classification and musculoskeletal management/rehabilitation. A physiotherapist with this qualification has special skills specific to treatment methods including joint mobilization and manipulation, muscle energy and muscle imbalance correction techniques, management of neurogenic pain disorders and rehabilitation of the neuromuscular system.

CAFCI: CERTIFIED BY THE ACUPUNCTURE FOUNDATION OF CANADA INSTITUTE

This is post graduate training and qualification in medical acupuncture.

MPT/MPHTY: MASTER OF PHYSIOTHERAPY

This is the current post graduate qualification a person in Canada must have to practice physiotherapy once they are registered with the regulatory board or College of Physiotherapists in their province/territory.

CPMA: CERTIFICATE PROGRAM IN MEDICAL ACUPUNCTURE

This is post graduate training and qualification in medical acupuncture.

CMP: CERTIFIED MULLIGAN PRACTITIONER

Mulligan practitioners have successfully completed the examination process in the Mulligan concept. A system of assessing, diagnosing and treating musculoskeletal disorders.

GUNN INTRAMUSCULAR STIMULATION (IMS)

Gunn Intramuscular Stimulation (IMS) is a total system for the diagnosis and treatment of myofascial pain syndromes (chronic pain conditions that occur in the musculoskeletal system when there is no obvious sign of injury or inflammation). IMS was developed by Dr. Gunn and is grounded in Western Medical Science, which is supported by research and by many experts in the field of orthopaedics and pain science. The treatment, which utilizes acupuncture needles because they are the thinnest implements available that are designed to penetrate deep within muscle tissue, specifically targets injured muscles that have contracted and become shortened from distress.

Physiotherapists are skilled in the assessment and management of a broad range of conditions that affect the musculoskeletal, circulatory, respiratory and nervous systems. Here are some of the ways a physiotherapist can help:

Treat sports injuries and provide advice on prevention of recurrence
Address specific orthopaedic conditions such as back/neck pain, arthritis, repetitive strain, muscle, tendon, ligament, joint, nerve injuries
Provide care for children with paediatric conditions such as orthopaedic, neurological and respiratory problems
Get you back on your feet and back to full function after surgery
Maximize your mobility, strength and function if you have a neurological disorder such as stroke, spinal cord injury or Parkinson’s disease
Oversee rehabilitation in your home after you have been ill or injured
Provide pre and post-natal care and attend to other women’s health conditions
Treat neck and back pain and other joint injuries
Work with you to treat and manage respiratory and cardiac conditions
Treat dizziness and balance problems

Physiotherapists treat people in hospitals and clinics, neighbourhood schools, patients homes, long-term care homes, and sports medicine facilities. When an accident or illness affects your body, your physiotherapist, a university-trained medical professional can restore your health. Physiotherapists treat the whole body, and the whole person with a biomedical and biopsychosocial (holistic) approach.

With ongoing clinical research, physiotherapists and massage therapists continue to develop techniques to prevent and treat physical injury and disorders. Physiotherapists believe in evidence based practice, meaning treatment approaches are founded in solid research and are recommended by the greater medical community.

Physiotherapists and massage therapists employ a comprehensive biomechanical approach, looking at the underlying causes of the injury, not just the injured part. All our therapists have an excellent orthopaedic knowledge base, as reflected by their graduate and post graduate university qualifications.