Physical Therapy Goals Examples

If you’re looking for physical therapy goals examples and curious about the format and methodology for writing goals for your patients, you’ve landed in the right place. 

In this article, I’ll share examples of physical therapy goals, including physical therapy short term goals examples, long term rehabilitation examples, and physical therapy SMART goals examples.

During your first visit with a patient, you will complete a full patient evaluation to obtain subjective and objective clinical findings, perform an assessment of the findings, create a treatment plan, and then set long and short term goals for rehabilitation. 

At each following visit, you will conduct a reassessment of the patient in order to determine their progress toward set goals and objectives. Subsequently, you will adjust the treatment plan to ensure the patient continues to make progress toward the established goals.

In physical therapy, the goal is the objective or target that a patient is working toward, and these  goals are the key to both patient care and patient success.

Goal setting is used to direct rehabilitation interventions toward a specific outcome and can result in greater client satisfaction and improved recovery. 

With that in mind, there are many different types of physical therapy goals examples I will share further on in this article.

Physical Therapy Goals Examples, Definitions, and Types

Goals for physical therapy patients can include short- and long-term goals. That said, regardless of the specified time frame, each goal should always be tailored to the patient’s specific needs when determining their care plan. 

You may also create iterative functional goals to keep the care plan moving along and reassess them at every patient visit. 

Below is an overview of some of the types of goals in physical therapy documentation. 

Short Term Goals (STGs)

STGs are defined as immediate and achievable goals that will be accomplished within three months (timeframe is based on patient care setting).

For instance, a patient’s physical therapy short term goals examples might include: “In two weeks, I will be able to walk up the staircase in my house.” or “In 10 days, I will be able to walk from my house to the mailbox unassisted.”

Long Term Goals (LTGs) 

LTGs are defined as elongated goals that will be accomplished within six months (timeframe is based on patient care setting).

Patient Goals 

Patient goals are specific to the patient and what they want to achieve throughout the duration of their treatment. 

Functional Goals 

Physical therapy functional goals are specific to an individual patient’s need or desire to return to optimal function in regular activities. Short and long term goals always have a functional goal component.

Goal setting is useful for communication throughout the continuum of care. 

When, or if, you are reporting back to the referring provider, you must report on the patient’s progress toward achieving established short and long term goals. 

Based on the patient’s improvements, the referring provider can write a prescription for additional physical therapy visits. 

If the client is using insurance, their insurance company will also require reports on the client’s advancement toward short and long term goals. Insurance reimbursement and continued coverage is based directly on a patient’s progress toward the established goals. 

Goals must be thorough, accessible, and consistent for all audiences. 

American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) Standards for Defensible Documentation in Patient/Client Management 

According to APTA, within the patient/client model, short term and long term physical therapy goals must include the following:

1. Identification of the patient or caregiver being treated
2. Description of the movement or activity that is limited 
3. A connection of the movement/activity to a specific function
4. Specific conditions in which the activity will be performed
5. The established time frame for achieving the goal (short or long term) 

Moreover, short-term and long-term goals often include:

• The part of the body in question
• The specific impairment of the area involved
• The specific goal related to that impairment 
• The functional activities being affected by the impairment 
• The target performance of the goal setting system
• The rationale for establishing the set goal 

How to Write Physical Therapy SMART Goals

In any clinical setting, goals must contain these specific elements in a concise manner to fully capture the ultimate goal of the patient’s physical therapy treatment. 

The intricacies of the goals for a pediatric patient will be different from those of an orthopedic patient, but the elements will be alike. 

To take our physical therapy goals examples to the next level, we’re going to implement the SMART system—-mnemonic pun intended. 

The gold standard of comprehensive goal writing is the SMART goal writing system. 

The SMART goal writing system includes the following attributes:

Specific: Details the who, what, where, when, and why of the goal. This portion should be directly related to the patient’s individual needs. 

Measurable: Use validated and objective measurements to write the goal and measure progress in achieving the goal.

Actionable: Set achievable and realistic goals for the individual patient, based on patient status—cognitive, physical, etc. 

Relevant: Establish function-based goals in partnership with the specific patient or caregiver, and ensure the goals are meaningful for the specific patient.

Time Bound: Set a specific timeframe for the patient to achieve the goal.

To apply the SMART system to physical therapy goals examples, we first incorporate what we know about the patient, including medical history and current age in addition to their general physical and mental health. 

Next, we make sure the goals we set for the patient are in line with their personal goals for treatment. 

We also make sure we have all of the necessary information about their injury or condition to make actionable and realistic goals that can be measured—in both our long and short term examples of physical therapy goals.

It is important to practice and implement writing specific goals and avoiding general and vague goals that do not directly pertain to the specific patient. 

In patient care settings, therapists are often rushed in their documentation process and can fall into the trap of using canned goals for their patients. 

Becoming efficient in writing more concrete and complete goals will help improve communication with the other providers on a patient’s care team, which will save time in the long term. 

Physical Therapy SMART Goals Examples 

Getting into the habit of writing these comprehensive goals simply takes practice and consideration of the specific client, their goals, and their care plan. 

Below, you will find some long and short term physical therapy goals examples, written using the SMART system, that can help guide you in your goal writing practices.

Physical Therapy Short Term Goals Examples: 

1. Patient will improve postural control with standing balance (eyes open and eyes closed) to avoid the risk of falls in four weeks—30 seconds each side, for 30 second repetitions, three reps..
   
2. Patient will regain muscle strength and quadriceps activation with VMO isometric contraction (10 second holds, 10 times, for three sets) and straight leg raises (10 times, for three sets) to improve gait control in three weeks.
   
3. Patient will regain shoulder range of motion from 95 degrees of shoulder flexion and abduction to 145 degrees of range of motion, with static stretching of  one to two minutes per motion twice daily in order to be able to wash her hair in the next four weeks. 

Long Term Physical Therapy Goals Examples:

1. Patient will walk two miles on a flat sidewalk, with no assistive device and with no pain or hip instability in three months.
   
2. Patient will be able to lift carry-on luggage (and travel efficiently) with complete shoulder range of motion and no pain in eight weeks.
   
3. Patient will compete in a half Ironman race (swim, bike, run) with complete right ankle mobility and strength, pain free, in four months. 

These physical therapy short term goals examples and long term goals examples utilize the SMART system while also adding a necessary functional component—making them physical therapy functional goals examples as well.

Using specific, measurable physical therapy goals examples helps to keep both therapist and patient on the same page and progressing in the same direction, as well as maintaining cohesion with the rest of the patient’s care team. 

When a physical therapist develops a thorough plan of care, writes achievable goals, and follows the recommendations of the APTA Documentation Standards and the SMART system, the patient’s goals will be robust and hit every essential element needed to move forward with success. 

These elements are essential to establish a clear vision of where the patient’s treatment plan is headed, and determine their expected return to function after completing their physical therapy care. 

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