Choosing a Physical Therapist

How to choose a Physical Therapist

 

I frequently get calls from potential patients whom I cannot treat, usually it is a matter of Insurance or perhaps they have a condition for which I am ill suited. The second question they always ask is who I would recommend. That will result in a conversation that lasts about 10 minutes and what I feel is a good recommendation for that person. I thought it might be a good idea to put some of those ideas down as a way to help the general public make good decisions regarding selecting a therapist.

1. Have you had physical therapy in the past and liked your physical therapist? Try them again, being comfortable with your therapist is very important.

2. Do you have a friend that has had physical therapy that could make a good recommendation? Just make sure it’s a similar situation, there’s a big difference between an 85y.o. women and a 25y.o. man. You can also ask athletic trainers at the local high school, personal trainers at a gym or local sports coaches with whom you are familiar if they have any preferences.

3. Check for specialist certifications: the American Physical Therapy Association bestows specialist certification on individuals who pass a certification test. A common example would be OCS or orthopedic certified specialist. Other examples are CHT (certified hand therapist), SCS (sports certified specialist). It should be noted that most therapists including myself hold no specialist certifications and are highly skilled and effective practitioners.

4. Call and Tour a facility you may be interested in. If they don’t have time to allow you to come visit and speak to a therapist they may not be a good choice.

5. Determine if you will be working with the same person or couple of people all the time. In larger facilities patients sometimes feel as though they get lost in a crowd or have too many different treating therapists. That is not to say this is inappropriate, only how many people feel when confronted with this situation.

6. How much continuing education does your potential therapist have and in what area. In the State of New Jersey 30 CE (continuing education) Units are required every 2 years. Did your therapist do all their work online, did they go to seminars, was their continuing education related to your particular problem. 

7. Pick the best facility as close to home as possible. Trust me, 2 to 3 times a week for 4 to 6 weeks can be a drag if your driving 10-20 miles one way. The price of gas is also an issue now.

How Not to Choose a Physical Therapist

1. My doctor told me to where to go. Your doctor may very well have suggested an excellent therapy provider. However, doctors sometimes have a financial interest in the facility they are referring you to, they may even own it. I am not suggesting you should not go to the facility recommended by your doctor but make sure it is not your only reason for doing so.

2. The company provides physical therapy to a major sports team. Unless you have a 7 million dollar a year contract to play sports I doubt you would get the level of care that sports team gets. These companies have multiple facilities staffed by very good therapists but no better than found at other providers that do not have a sports team tie-in.

Notice I did not mention the number of years someone has been a therapist. That is because someone may move from a geriatric setting to an orthopedic setting and even though they may have 10+ years as a therapist they may not be skilled in orthopedics or vice versa. Also I have know some incredibly good therapists with only a few years experience and some not so good therapists with many years of experience. I also did not mention hearing something bad about a particular clinic. This is a very subjective area and while some one may not have liked the facility at which they were treated they will generally not be vitriolic, only note they wouldn’t go there again. Any recommendation that is incredibly good or bad must be taken with a grain of salt.

This list is not all inclusive and will probably change and grow. If you are a therapist or patient with an experience that would benefit others please contact me and I’ll add it to the list.

ronald_glover@olivierichiropractic.com