Navy Officer Subspecialty · Medical

15L0 Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation, General

An officer subspecialty earned alongside a primary designator, marking advanced education or experience in this field.

Overview

General physical medicine and rehabilitation officers perform routine medical examinations and diagnose and treat diseases and disorders. They maintain the medical welfare of command personnel, supervise routine laboratory procedures, conduct unit medical inspections, and train enlisted personnel in first aid and sanitation.

Core Skills

  • functional capacity assessment
  • rehabilitation program design
  • musculoskeletal diagnosis
  • pain management
  • electrodiagnostic testing
  • disability evaluation
  • therapy team coordination
  • assistive device prescription
  • patient goal setting

Civilian Software & Tools

  • eClinicalWorks EHR software
  • Microsoft Word
  • Allscripts PM
  • athenahealth athenaCollector
  • Automatic Data Processing AdvancedMD EHR
  • Benchmark Systems Benchmark Clinical EHR
  • Biodex Medical Systems Biodex Concussion Manager
  • Bizmatics PrognoCIS EMR

Civilian Career Paths

  • Physician
  • Rehabilitation
  • Behavioral Health

Training & Development

Getting Started

  • Basic Life Support (BLS)
  • Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS)

Career Growth

  • American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Board Certification
  • Certified Physician Executive (CPE)

Also Common

  • Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS)
  • Certified Medical Examiner

What the Work Involves

  • Document examination results, treatment plans, and patients' outcomes.
  • Examine patients to assess mobility, strength, communication, or cognition.
  • Assess characteristics of patients' pain, such as intensity, location, or duration, using standardized clinical measures.
  • Provide inpatient or outpatient medical management of neuromuscular disorders, musculoskeletal trauma, acute and chronic pain, deformity or amputation, cardiac or pulmonary disease, or other disabling conditions.
  • Monitor effectiveness of pain management interventions, such as medication or spinal injections.

Related Occupations

  • Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric
  • Pediatric Surgeons
  • Cardiologists
  • Emergency Medicine Physicians

Typical preparation for these civilian roles: graduate-level education or extensive experience.

Defense contractor jobs for 15L0

Equivalent Roles in Other Branches

Descriptions may be summarized for clarity. Verify all information with your branch career counselor or official military documentation before making career decisions.

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