Managing Bone And Joint Health With Physical Therapy

Physical therapy often can be thought of as something that only benefits people with severe injuries. But to residents of Mount Vernon and elsewhere, this type of therapy can help just about any mental or physical condition, including those receiving palliative care.

This type of activity is designed to help repair or retrain muscles and other parts of the body that may have been injured or lost due to mobility changes like accidents, stroke, illness, injury, or other mental or physical causes.

The team at Above and Beyond Home Health Care and Hospice are definite advocates of physical therapy for just about any occasion since we know it can have an important role in maintaining and hopefully improving someone’s quality of life.

In fact, physical therapy is available as one of our services. We offer the expertise of a group of skilled physical therapists and physical therapist assistants. Our people are trained in how to help people of all ages with the tools to improve or regain any abilities that may have been lost or diminished for whatever reasons.

This includes working on muscles, joints, bones, and other pieces of the musculoskeletal system. It can include making sure these different systems work together.

Many of our clients are elderly, so we’re familiar with some of the common reasons people may need physical therapy and what common recovery goals could be.

We also are happy to visit a client’s house to perform physical therapy, rather than having him or her go to someone’s office or clinic. In a home health environment, they can be comfortable in their own familiar space.

This is also a good time to meet with any family members or caregivers who also should learn something about the therapy that’s being offered. They also might want to learn if there’s any ‘homework’ or supplemental studying or reading material.

This way, the caregivers can help with any exercises that should be worked on between visits and make sure the client sticks with things and focuses on improving themselves, rather than waiting for the next visit and possibly decline in abilities.

Learning more

There’s never a bad time to learn about physical therapy. October is actually considered National Physical Therapy Month. It’s an annual gathering, celebration, and commemoration.  It draws attention to the value of physical therapists and physical therapist assistants have in improving a client’s mobility, helping their body, lowering their pain, and helping them gain or return to full independence.

For instance, after a fall, someone may hurt different parts of their body such as their legs, arms, or hip. They may be in pain when they try to move around again or lose some abilities. They may find it difficult to do standard tasks around the house, but they don’t want to leave to move to a rehabilitation facility.

A physical therapist can help assist with improving strength in getting them to improve their balance, build up muscles and joints, and improve confidence since it’s so easy to not want to do anything again for fear of hurting yourself.

National Physical Therapy Month is all about celebrating the role of the PT and PTA, and encouraging them to help educate people about why everything they do is not just helpful but “transformative,” which is a word the American Physical Therapy Association uses.

Making improvements

The APTA shares that some of the physical problems many people face may stem from the fact that people don’t get enough physical activity in general.  We may not have a lot of strength, flexibility, or balance, which is why it can be easier to hurt ourselves more seriously in certain situations.

But a physical therapist or a physical therapist assistant can work with people to improve all of these areas. This goes beyond just addressing a particular injury, but gaining other skills to avoid all sorts of problems in the future.

This type of therapy could include teaching some basic exercises and stretches that can be performed on a regular basis and helping create some good habits and routines.

Our physical therapy team can also connect you to other professionals in our organization who can help in other ways, including massage therapists, who can relieve sore and tired muscles; or occupational therapists, who can teach other useful skills to move around safely in your home, such as getting in and out of bed; dressing and grooming; and other activities necessary for living independently.

We’re also always glad to look through your home to look for areas that could be safer. This can include removing hazards, such as removing area rugs that could be tripping hazards or get caught on a cane or walker. It can also include adding things like railings around the house or making improvements to the bathroom such as adding a chair or handles.