In a pediatric hospital it is likely that young patients are not aware of their maximum recovery potential. This is evident when they are reluctant to perform rehabilitation exercises deemed safe by physiotherapy. Physiotherapists are therefore called upon to face the dilemma of whether to give the patient what he wants or make him do what is best for him. In that episode the decision was made to push the young patient to an acceptable limit. However, the young patient was emotionally distressed even though there was physical evidence that he could perform the exercises easily. Ethically, the physical therapist was doing his job by providing optimal physical treatment. However, there are consequences that can be amplified especially when dealing with young patients. Since physical therapy requires multiple sessions, it is important to want to give the impression that the clinic is a safe and rehabilitative environment. Personally I would act according to my judgment of individual cases, keeping in mind that there is an opportunity cost for other patients who are denied an appointment. This places more emphasis on being productive during treatments. My approach to this would be to be skilled at motivating patients to strive for functionality outside of the clinic and this would require experience. Referring to