A functional capacity evaluation (FCE) may be utilized to make an initial determination about how an injury (or illness) affects a person’s ability to work.  Our physical therapists in the Alliance family offer FCE services that are rooted in science and use objective standards to collect reliable information about current functional and vocational status and estimate potential function and work status.

What is a Functional Capacity Evaluation?

A 4 to 5-hour assessment designed to systematically determine an individual’s current functional abilities regarding a variety of activities. The evaluation includes an interview and history, self-assessment tools, and physical testing for position tolerances, mobility, and dynamic strength.

An FCE helps to answer questions like:

• Can a person return to work safely?
• What type of job can a person physically handle?
• What are the person’s safe lifting tolerances?
• What work accommodations could be made in order for the person to return to duty?
• What is the next appropriate step in regard to rehabilitation?
• What are the person’s cardiovascular and physical endurance limitations for working?
• What are the person’s positional tolerances for standing, sitting and walking?

Baseline FCE

We can provide a baseline FCE to determine whether a worker is fit to return to a wide range of activities, fit to return to some duties or unfit to return at the current stage of recovery.

Reliable

• FCE services at Advent Physical Therapy always use standardized, scientifically proven methods and equipment to ensure that the results of an assessment are accurate, reliable and legally defensible.

Objective

• Advent Physical Therapy provides fair, unbiased results with our FCEs. We will always use objective methods and collect objective data as part of our accurate FCE services.

Simple

• Our team presents results in a clear, simple format in a timely manner to help enable the worker and their employer to determine the results and make a decision on the worker’s status.