October is National Physical Therapy Month

Health Network One is celebrating National Physical Therapy Month and our incredible physical therapists and PT assistants who are out there every day making a difference in the lives of their patients and the health care system as a whole.?

NPTM has been raising awareness about the benefits of physical therapy for 30 years. This year the NPTM theme is “Choose to Move,” emphasizing the perks of regular physical activity while extolling the unique value our physical therapists bring as movement experts.

Physical therapists play a unique role because they see their patients through an injury or illness that has limited their mobility — essentially restoring their level of functioning, no wonder people see them as heroes.

The Benefits of Physical Therapy??

???????????Reduction or elimination of pain -?using therapeutic techniques to restore muscle and joint function and prevent pain from returning.

???????????Avoiding surgery -?when pain can be eliminated, and the patient can heal from an injury.

???????????Preventing sports injuries -?because PTs understand the risks associated with various sports, they can design prevention exercise programs.

???????????Improving balance and preventing falls -?PTs can screen patients to see if they are a high risk for falls — especially older folks or those experiencing vertigo. They can provide exercises that challenge coordination and balance.

???????????Managing those signs of aging -?As we age, we’re more prone to arthritis and osteoporosis; PTs can help ease symptoms and boost movement to perform everyday tasks.?

A Few Things You Didn’t Know About Physical Therapy

·?????PT: Providing a safe alternative to opioids for pain management

PTs can treat pain using movement, hands-on care, and patient education instead of masking the pain with opioids. The CDC has cited “high-quality evidence that exercise can help treat hip and knee osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia and low back pain.

·?????PT: Not just for strains and sprains

PTs treat headaches, temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dysfunction, concussions, vertigo, osteoarthritis, and carpal tunnel syndrome. Physical therapists also work with stroke, heart attack, and traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients and people with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy, Huntington’s, and Parkinson’s Disease.??

·?????PT: Helps manage diabetes

Through exercise, you can effectively manage blood sugar levels.

·?????PT: Helps before and after surgery

We all know that many post-surgical procedures require PT to restore a person’s function level. However, did you know that having PT before surgery can shorten hospital stays by reducing atrophy? It can also minimize post-operative care by 29 percent for knee and hip replacement patients.

·?????PT: Not just for injured athletes, but for athletic enhancement

PTs can help improve your game by teaching you to move better and train better. Physical therapists provide movement analyses, set up training regimes, and help people choose and adjust equipment.

·?????Physical therapists have advanced degrees

After the 1990s, aspiring PTs had to enroll in a Master of Science program. Today most graduate programs have a three-year Doctorate of Physical Therapy degree, and PTs must pass a medical board exam to get licensed.

At Health Network One, we’re committed to taking care of our physical therapists, working to ease their administrative burden so they have more time to do what they love to do — take care of their patients. Our one-on-one, personalized service helps our providers end the frustration of figuring out who to call when they need help with claims, payments, credentialing, and more — instead, they call us directly. It’s why 95% of our providers stay in-network with us. For more information, visit therapynetowrk.com.