Physiotherapy is an integral part of Orthopaedic treatment and rehabilitation thereafter. Physiotherapy help patients affected by injury, illness, or disability through movement and exercise, manual therapy, education, and advice. The core of physiotherapy is the patient’s involvement in their own care, through education, awareness, empowerment, and participation in their treatment.
Role of a Physiotherapist in this lockdown
A physiotherapist devises a patient-specific plan using treatment techniques to promote the ability to move, reduce pain, restore function, and prevent disability. Physical therapists provide care for people in a variety of settings, including hospitals, private practices, outpatient clinics, home health agencies, schools, sports and fitness facilities, work settings, and nursing homes. As clinicians, physical therapists engage in an examination process that includes taking the patient history, conducting a systems review, and performing tests and measures to identify potential and existing problems. Once a diagnosis has been made, a physiotherapist provides interventions (the interactions and procedures used in managing and instructing patients/clients), conduct re-examinations, modify interventions as necessary to achieve anticipated goals and expected outcomes, and develop and implement discharge plans.
Sports physiotherapists use physical activity to establish long-term wellness, improved daily performance, and recovery from injury or chronic pain issues. Along with managing a wide range of injuries and health issues, they prescribe exercise programs that utilize strength and cardiovascular training. The physical assessment performed by your sports physiotherapist is critical to achieving a customized exercise program. If you have sustained an injury, your sports physiotherapist will create a plan to help you return to your sport while minimizing the risk of reinjury and maximizing daily performance. Sports physiotherapists can help a patient with joint-related injuries such as sprains and strains, injuries related to the muscles, arthritis, and other inflammatory issues. A sports physiotherapist will treat these and other common issues while helping you achieve better results from your health care plan.
How patients can get their physical therapy during this period of lockdown?
Travel restrictions and social distancing during lockdown have reduced the accessibility of a physiotherapist. But the use of technology has opened up a new paradigm for consultation in the medical field. Most hospitals have started online video consultation facilities for the convenience of patients. Independent App-based platforms also provide audio/video consultation for physiotherapy needs. If the need arises a hospital visit to the physiotherapy department can also be arranged with prior appointments in all major hospitals.
Authored by: Dr Gaurav P. Bhardwaj MS ( Ortho), MCh ( Liverpool), FRCS (Orth) Institute of Orthopaedics & Joint Replacement. PSRI Hospital.
Disclaimer:
The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as a health advice. We would ask you to consult a qualified professional or medical expert to gain additional knowledge before you choose to consume any product or perform any exercise.
