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Resources for Physical Therapists

Physical therapy is ‘the best-kept secret in health care’ WSOC TV [Video]

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If you think physical therapy is only about rehabilitation after surgery or recovering from an accident, think again. For the vast majority, seeing a physical therapist should be about prevention, routine assessment and staying well.

“We’re the best-kept secret in health care,” Sharon Dunn, the past president of the American Physical Therapy Association, told The Associated Press.

Roger Herr, the current president of the APTA, and Gammon Earhart, associate dean for physical therapy at the medical school at Washington University in St. Louis, echoed Dunn’s prevention message in separate interviews with the AP.

“We need to change our image by getting out of our silos, out of our brick-and-mortar clinics,” said Dunn, who teaches at LSU.

The image of the profession tends to be one-dimensional. You’ve had knee surgery, your back keeps acting up or you’re injured and you’ve been referred by a physician to a physical therapist.

You go …

Categories
Resources for Physical Therapists

Physical therapy is 'the best-kept secret in health care' [Video]

Most people think of physical therapy as rehabilitation. But many physical therapists want the profession to be seen as preventive medicine. Think of a physical therapist the way you do a dentist. You go regularly and get checked out even if you're not having a problem. You could have an exam that would include your health history and current health physical activity, sleep and nutrition. This would be followed by a look at how youre moving. It might include things like postural alignment and movement patterns as you walk, run, reach, sit and stand. In terms of strength and flexibility think muscle imbalances.