Been Passed Around?

If you are currently receiving physical therapy, or have in the past, one of the things that you should consider is "how many people are you, or have you, worked with?" In many clinics, it is not uncommon for patients to be passed between different physical therapists (or assistants) during their treatments. New research shows that this may not be beneficial for you.......

In a 2018 study by Magel et al, the authors found that for low back pain patients, those patients who had a greater continuity of care (i.e. did not see multiple therapists) were less likely to require a surgery and had lower health care costs.  Although not studied, in my experience the same would likely be found for other musculoskeletal conditions. 

Establishing a good working relationship with your therapist has been shown in other studies to be beneficial in your outcome. A good working relationship means that you have confidence in your therapist, you are able to share your responses to treatment, your therapist takes the time to listen to your concerns and is able to adjust the treatment based on how you are doing. When you see more than one provider, this is harder to do. 

Many clinics are set up for one person to do the evaluation and another (or a few others) to do the treatment. Or, in some cases, patients are shared between 2 or 3 different therapists, meaning you may see one person one day and another the next. This is not the best way for you to be treated, and as stated above, may have a negative impact on how well you progress. 

I have worked in clinics in which this is standard operating procedure and when I opened my own clinic, I made sure that this way of treating patients would not be done. Patients at ProMotion are seen by one provider only for the duration of your treatment time. This allows for much better planning, adjusting, and progression of treatments to help you improve faster. Also, as a patient, you do not have to tell "your story" repeatedly to a different person each time you go in for an appointment. 

If you are currently, or have in the past, received treatment by multiple people, and feel like you have been passed around from therapist to therapist, understand that this may have an influence on how well you are or have progressed. Continuity of care is important for your recovery and if you are not, or have not received this, it may be time to look elsewhere for help.

Feel free to reach out to discuss other options.

​Bob