The profession of a physical therapist assistant is a demanding and rewarding career. Physical therapist assistants work under the supervision of a licensed physical therapist. Physical therapist assistants have the pleasure of helping patients regain movement and manage pain caused by injuries, illnesses or surgeries. There are a vast array of subjects to study on the road to become a physical therapist assistant. Palliative care, pediatric care and geriatric care, are endearing specialty areas for the physical therapist assistant. Palliative care is medical or comfort care that reduces the severity of a disease or slows its progress, but does not provide a cure (Dreeben, 2007). Different people have different needs when life is ending. Working with the incurable may sound depressing but death is a certainty and what we do each day for these patients as physical therapist assistants, matters. Providing care effectively and appropriately has a huge impact on the patient, therefore acquiring the ability to comfort and care for a patient at such a critical stage in life, is an amazin...
Palliative care - treatment that helps to comfort patients, while slowing the progress of a disease.
When you think of home care for a loved one, you want comfort and convenience with quality of life. A misconception of palliative care is that it is equivalent to hospice care, which concentrates on end of life. However, palliative care is now being offered to patients whether it begins early at diagnosis or throughout ongoing treatment. It is no longer limited to medical settings as more health care agencies are now offering it in home care. Think of palliative care as “comfort” care during any stage of illness.
“With her sweet voice, magical hands, technical precision and absolute determination, Renee put me back together, and I’m golfing again,” states Elyse Wolf, a patient of a physical therapist (Our Equipment). With the help of Wolf’s physical therapist, she was able to golf again. Physical therapists help people recover from injuries and disability health crises. As one prepares for a future in the field of physical therapy, one must consider the job, the educational requirements, the work environment, the wages and benefits, and the potential for the advancement of a physical therapist.
Physical therapist help treat patients who have an injury or illness that prevents them from moving around to their full potential. The Bureau of Labor Statistics states that “Physical therapists provide care to people of all ages who have functional problems resulting from back and neck injuries; sprains, strains, and fractures; arthritis; amputations; neurological disorders, such as stroke or cerebral palsy; injuries related to work and sports; and other conditions.” (Physical
To “live as fully and comfortably as possible” is a key phrase in the care and treatment of a patient under hospice care. Hospice care focuses on the comfort and quality of life for a person with a terminal illness. The focus is not on a cure. A hospice care provider wants to help the patient be as pain free and comfortable as they can be, so that they can live the rest of their life as fully as possible. Unfortunately, more often than not, patients with terminal illnesses are viewed to be too frail to participate in occupations (Russell, M., & Bauh-Lampe, A., 20016). It is also true that people facing the end of their life feel helpless or depressed, lose their ability to participate in a lot of the daily activities they once enjoyed, and experience a loss of dignity. (Badger, S., Macleod, R., & Honey, A. 2016). However, with hospice care, many patients are able to find some degree of comfort, safety and control over their lives during their final days.
Palliative care is essentially end of life care. It specializes in keeping the patient as comfortable
Physical therapy is a career that will always be needed throughout society; it helps the human body rebuild physical function in people that have been injured, have birth defects, or any other reasons. Physical therapy is one the medical specialties doctors reply on. There are certain education requirements to become one, just like many other careers. It is a career that an individual who enjoys helping people and working in the medical field would be perfect for. The job of physical therapy and physical therapy assistants is an important factor to a lot of people. It is a job that will always be needed; there will always be people that need help regaining their physical health to be able to walk again or maybe just be able to move their thumb
Physical Therapy When children are young, they are often asked what they want to do when they are older. As children our reply is usually a general occupation like doctor, astronaut, pilot or something else that is common. Many kids who say doctors do not understand how many fields of medicine are available out there. For someone who enjoys helping others through the difficulties in life, becoming a physical therapist can bring satisfaction and enrichment. Physical therapists are “highly-educated,licensed health care professionals” (“APTA”).
According to World Health Organization (2002) “Palliative care is an approach which improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing life-threatening
Physical therapy is the most exciting healthcare profession. Being able to wake up every morning to help other people who have problems with their body is amazing. From joints to muscles, spinal cord, heart disease, lower back pain, head injuries, arthritis, fractures, and many other disabling conditions a physical therapist will be by your side one hundred percent. The job of a physical therapist is to evaluate your problem or difficulties. Once the evaluation is completed the therapist provides the patient an assessment test. This test usually checks for muscle strength, joint motion, flexibility, balance, and coordination. They also check for any neurological problems and analyze your movement and range of motion. Next, the physical therapist
According to APTA’s Provision of Physical Therapy Interventions and Related Tasks, 4 Physical therapy aides are any support personnel who perform designated tasks related to the operation of the physical therapy service. The tasks only be performed by the aide under direct personal supervision of the physical therapist, or where allowab...
I have been a registered nurse at UCLA for 18 months. One particular issue that has captured my attention is the utilization of palliative care in health care. Because nurses are generally at the bedside all the time, they have an important role to play in voicing the importance of its utilization and implementation in the patient’s care.
A physical therapist does a lot of things to help patients get back to what they normally do day to day before an injury. They do this by coming up with plans that helps to reduce pains and help restore movements and make goals for patients. They help by having a hands-on approach and being able to help with exercises and stretches they also massage muscles to help manipulate them to move. They also use different technology to help with anything that deals with the movement or that would restrict movement such as ultrasounds and electrotherapy.
They can work in a variety of settings such as nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, hospitals, physical therapist clinics, sports physical therapist centers, and even schools. It does take a certain type of person to work as a physical therapist. A person interested in this field mus...
...states “There is a need for health professionals to better understand the concept of palliative care, factors that contribute to honest, open authentic and therapeutic relationships of those concerned in the care of the dying child” (p.59). The care provided to a child and family at the end-of-life can have a lasting effect on the way they grieve. When the medical team has received the specialized training for palliative care of a child, it helps lessen many of the barriers that lie between the family and the health care team. The medical team plays a vital role in the families perception of the care their child is receiving. When the death of a child is approached in a multi-disciplinary way,where everyone on the medical team works in sync, It provides an optimal environment that could improve the end-of-life experience for dying children. (Beckstrand et al., 2010)