PT and the City

Embrace the Shake

2013-06-13T17:50:00Z

A friend of mine emailed me a link to a 10-minute video from the TED website . I hadn't ever heard of TED talks before, but after I watched the video I read more about the site. The motto of TED is spreading ideas that were founded on technology, entertainment and design. It seems like a really neat site and platform to learn more from others and is certainly applicable in a changing business world where sharing information is a powerful networking tool. The video I watched is about an artist, Phil...(read more)

PhDs and ‘Physical Therapy Assistants'

2013-06-06T15:37:00Z

Over the past few months I've noticed a few things about the physical therapy profession that caught my attention, and I wanted to describe the situations here. First, I was speaking with a physical therapist about the doctorate program education for physical therapists, and she responded, "I think it's a really good thing that they are making physical therapists have their PhD now." We continued our discussion about the degree and the role of experience and mentorship, but I believe this individual...(read more)

When Physical Therapy Fails

2013-05-30T19:31:00Z

My mom has struggled with back pain for more than a year. I didn't know about it until it had been bothering her for a few months; right about the time that she started going to physical therapy. Unfortunately (or fortunately, however you look at it), my mom lives about two hours away from me, so I'm not able to provide much treatment for her other than a short assessment when I visit or discussions over the phone. A quick summary of my mom's symptoms: The pain runs along her right T12 rib and was...(read more)

Are We Affordable and Accessible?

2013-05-23T22:16:00Z

Those are two powerful words in healthcare today -- "accessible" and "affordable." We (healthcare providers) need to be accessible and affordable to patients in order to provide care, period. Those two words don't even begin to address quality or evidence-based care, but simply allow patients the opportunity to receive care. This concept is more global than just a physical therapy clinic and is probably more of a public service barrier to care, but the idea intrigues me. The biggest question I have...(read more)

A Letter to Graduates

2013-05-16T17:55:00Z

It's hard for me to believe it has been four years since I graduated PT school. I remember working as a student with physical therapists who had been practicing for four or five years and looking at them as a source of information and experience. Now that I'm on the other side of that spectrum, I still feel like I'm learning every day. As the hundreds of PT programs prepare for graduation, that's one of the main suggestions I'd have for new graduates -- just keep learning. Here's a list of some things...(read more)

Supply and Demand

2013-05-09T14:52:00Z

My newest thought project for this week is to better understand how physical therapist staffing is predicted for a new clinic. How does a new healthcare company or private practice facility estimate what kind of staffing it will need in a new location? My general understanding of private practice is that due to limited funds, staffing will start whatever the owner can afford, not be based on the potential volume or demand for an area. If the owner can afford two therapists, he will start with two...(read more)

Mentor or Sponsor?

2013-05-02T16:37:00Z

Since I've spent a lot of time in the past 18 months making changes in my own career and developing the content of the training and orientation program for new employees at my clinic, the concept of mentors has always been on my mind. Even when I graduated PT school (which seems like an era ago), the common words of wisdom from my professors were, "Find a job that offers mentorship." Seemed to make sense. I don't know everything and I'd need to have a job where I could ask questions and learn from...(read more)

I Tube, Do YouTube?

2013-04-26T17:53:00Z

Over the weekend I was reading the article for our staff journal club this week, a recent research paper investigating the effects of thoracic thrust manipulation (with non-thrust cervical mobilization) for the treatment of neck pain. As you may recall, participating in our regular journal club was one of the professional goals I wrote about earlier this year and I've dedicated some of my weekend time to read over the article in preparation. Most of the time I perform thoracic mobilization it is...(read more)

I Can Teach

2013-04-18T17:29:00Z

This weekend I taught a continuing education course with three other therapists. It took well over a year for us to organize the content, create the handouts and visual displays and market the course to get as many participants as possible. It was a fun process to figure out the best way to engage the participants and relay the most important information without being overwhelming or too simple. Our course was titled "Challenges to Early Mobility" and focused on barriers to activity and physical...(read more)

Ducks and Physical Therapy

2013-04-11T16:43:00Z

This week during the show "The Voice" on NBC, Aflac aired a 60-second commercial showing the Aflac duck working with a physical therapist to recover from some injuries. (The injuries were aired in earlier commercials). I think Aflac is marketing services their clients receive while off work due to injury, including money for bills and other needs. I was floored when I saw the commercial. Unbelievable. First, the fact that the commercial was 60 seconds and not the typical 30 seconds is a substantial...(read more)

When is PT Inappropriate?

2013-04-04T14:14:00Z

A friend of mine works as a nurse in a hospice setting and she mentioned to me a few days ago that many of the patients she admits into their facility come with orders for physical therapy. I've seen articles and research about the effectiveness of physical therapy for patients in a hospice setting, but the idea that many of them have PT orders is something to discuss. Nearly all of the patients admitted to hospice will expire within six months of admission. Some will improve and transfer out, but...(read more)

Will Travel for Work

2013-03-27T20:14:00Z

I'm traveling for work this week, my second "business" trip as a physical therapist. My employer is opening a new clinic in northern Wisconsin that also has a rehab staff member onsite, so I'm here finalizing the set-up and training the new staff member. I blogged last fall about my first experience traveling and I'm much more prepared for this trip than I was for my first! My hotel room this week has a kitchenette in my room, which is making the whole week better already. I'm able to cook for myself...(read more)

Mechanical Pain

2013-03-22T14:38:00Z

I worked with a therapist last week (setting up a new clinic in northern Wisconsin) who has many years of experience in PT. It was interesting to work alongside him and see his approach to patients and the sometimes immediate results his patients had with his effective treatment style. We had some time to discuss and a few conversations about mechanical pain (within the joint) versus soft-tissue pain and the differences in treatment style based on the therapist's interpretation of the source of the...(read more)

CE Course

2013-03-14T18:25:00Z

Last year I spent a lot of time preparing material to present at the Wisconsin PT spring conference and was disappointed when I learned the class was canceled the week prior due to low enrollment numbers. I worked with three other therapists for months going over the course objectives, course content and supporting research. Well, a few months later a local university contacted us and offered to host the course as a continuing education opportunity. So I haven't looked at the material in almost a...(read more)

Strengthen your Strengths

2013-03-08T17:01:00Z

"Success is achieved by developing our strengths , not by eliminating our weaknesses." -- Marilyn vos Savant I just finished my performance review for 2012 at work. It's actually an enjoyable experience for myself as I like reflecting on the previous year, looking forward to the potential of the upcoming year and receiving feedback to make myself better. During my first few years as a physical therapist, I absolutely dreaded hearing anything that could be perceived as criticism, but now I seek out...(read more)