Acute Care Nurses vs Physical Therapist Assistants AI Risk

Job 1

Job 2

Job 1

Job 2

low risk

Acute Care Nurses

45 shared · 41 different

core competencies

low risk

Physical Therapist Assistants

Side-by-Side Comparison

Physical Therapist Assistants leads 4–1

Metric	Acute Care Nurses	Physical Therapist Assistants
Risk Score	23.4%	22.5%
Risk Tier	Low Risk	Low Risk
Risk Percentile	15th	12th
Tasks at Risk (>50%)	3 / 15	1 / 15
Median Salary	$93,600	$65,510
Employment	3.3M	108K

Skill Comparison

Sorted by largest difference

Performing for or Working Directly with the Public

Developing and Building Teams

Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates

Medicine and Dentistry

Assisting and Caring for Others

Making Decisions and Solving Problems

Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others

Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work

Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others

Education and Training

MathematicsAI-Vulnerable

Psychology

Protective Factors

Higher values indicate stronger protection against AI displacement

Acute Care Nurses

37%

total discount

Physical Therapist Assistants

34%

total discount

Task Risk Comparison

Tasks sorted by AI automation risk — higher means more automatable

Acute Care Nurses

3 of 15 at risk

82%Refer patients for specialty consultations or treatments.

66%Document data related to patients' care including assessment results, interventions, medications, patient responses, or treatment changes.

53%Interpret information obtained from electrocardiograms (EKGs) or radiographs (x-rays).

47%Assess urgent and emergent health conditions using both physiologically and technologically derived data.

41%Assess the impact of illnesses or injuries on patients' health, function, growth, development, nutrition, sleep, rest, quality of life, or family, social and educational relationships.

Physical Therapist Assistants

1 of 15 at risk

86%Document patient information, such as notes on their progress.

43%Observe patients during treatments to compile and evaluate data on their responses and progress and provide results to physical therapist in person or through progress notes.

43%Clean work area and check and store equipment after treatment.

42%Instruct, motivate, safeguard, and assist patients as they practice exercises or functional activities.

39%Secure patients into or onto therapy equipment.

Wage Comparison

Physical Therapist Assistants earns -$28,090(-30%) vs Acute Care Nurses

Acute Care NursesPhysical Therapist Assistants

10th

$66,030$46,020

25th

$78,610$58,240

Median

$93,600$65,510

75th

$107,960$77,270

90th

$135,320$87,630

Premium Head-to-Head Analysis

Displacement Timeline Comparison

Acute Care Nurses2028–2035

Physical Therapist Assistants2028–2035

20242030203520402045

Physical Therapist Assistants has a longer runway before significant displacement, projected 0 years later than Acute Care Nurses.

Risk-Adjusted Salary

Salary weighted by displacement risk: salary × (1 − risk%)

Acute Care Nurses

$71,744

from $93,600

Physical Therapist Assistants

$50,757

from $65,510

After adjusting for AI risk, Acute Care Nurses offers $20,987 more in risk-adjusted pay.

Transition Feasibility

Skill Overlap

Low overlap — significant retraining needed for transition

Unique to Acute

Unique to Physical

Combined Protection Strategy

Regardless of which path you choose, focus on these protective factors

Fine Manipulation

Social Intelligence

Decision Complexity

Regulatory Barriers

Acute Care NursesPhysical Therapist Assistants

Find transitions from Acute Care Nurses Find transitions from Physical Therapist Assistants