Do You Know Your Physical Therapist?

By Carlos J. Berio, PT, DPT, MS, CSCS

SPARK Physiotherapy, LLC

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Do You Know Your Physical Therapist?

Being able to make good decisions about your family's health care begins with an understanding about different health professionals, how they can help and how to know if you have chosen the right one for your situation. This article will provide information about the field of physical therapy and physical therapists (PT).

Physical therapists are highly skilled in differentiating between problems we can solve and issues that must be referred to a different medical specialist. More often now, we see people as an alternative to surgery or to pick up on clues that can prevent pain or injury altogether. We are the “movement people.”

If your pain impacts your ability to work or enjoy your free time, then I highly recommend you find a PT in your area who will find the problem and design a comprehensive plan to get you pain free again.

Now that you've selected a PT as the practitioner of choice, how do you select one from many?

Doctorate Level Education

It is important to work with the best available and most qualified PT, especially when it's your body on the line.

Treatment Time With a PT

Be sure to know how much hands-on time you will be getting with your PT and not just with an aide or technician. The more time with your PT, the faster you will get better and back to pain free activity.

Note that sometimes clinics that provide the highest ratio of PT to client time may require you to bill your own health insurance. While this might sound inconvenient, practices that operate in this manner are typically among the highest in client satisfaction.

Additionally, and this is an important tip, the total cost of treatment is relatively the same as when the clinic bills your insurance for you when one takes into account co-pays and the amount of time that treatment will take.

Expertise In a Specialty

Some PTs work with children, others work with athletes. Some specialize in certain injuries or certain sports. Become educated about the specialty of the PT or the practice that you are selecting so you are certain you will receive the best care.

Do your best to follow this advice and you will surely be in good hands with a physical therapist.