Is Telehealth Physical Therapy Right for Me?
It seems like the world changed course after COVID, resulting in many fields moving their practice model in new directions. Healthcare is not immune. So many types of medical specialties are now providing options for virtual visits, to save people time and money.
This can be advantageous to some! Skipping the long drives, parking lots, waiting rooms and high co-pays can be a dream compared to the alternative. The field of rehab has caught on and in the past several years has transitioned to providing some telehealth services, though often not widely utilized.
Other people are more leery of having to learn new technology, and wonder if virtual rehabilitation can be beneficial for them.
Here is our take on an ideal model for telehealth in rehabilitation
A patient has a new or longstanding ache or injury, and comes to the clinic for an evaluation. After a thorough evaluation with a Physical Therapist or Occupational Therapist, the clinician diagnoses the patient’s dysfunction, finds out what structures are involved, and begins a rehab program with heavy emphasis on home exercises.
After 1-2 visits, the patient feels comfortable with the exercises and wants to try managing them at home. Every week to two weeks, the patient and therapist conference on a 15-20 min video chat to review old exercises, check in on symptoms, and prescribe new and more progressive exercises as indicated. The patient often saves money on co-pays, and also isn’t required to come in two times a week for two months; just as needed for updates and progressions. The therapist can monitor progress and pain, and decide if the patient needs to return for an in-patient visit for any reason. And the great thing is, this model works!
A 2022 study on Telehealth Outcomes found that the results from video chat physical therapy were comparable to in-person rehabilitation for reducing low back pain. Another study done during the COVID pandemic found no differences in patient satisfaction from therapy performed in clinic vs. via telehealth.
Usually, the biggest kinks are worked out in the first visit, including making sure that a patient’s smartphone or laptop has video and sound features turned on as well as working internet. Beyond that, it is simply a matter of answering a call at the appointment time when your therapist calls!
If you’re not sure whether you would benefit from telehealth rehab services, ask your clinician today, or set up an appointment to give it a try.
References
[1] Outcomes of Telehealth Physical Therapy Provided Using Real-Time, Videoconferencing for Patients With Chronic Low Back Pain: A Longitudinal Observational Study. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35667399/
[2] Patient Satisfaction for Telehealth Physical Therapy Services was Comparable to that of In-Person Services during the COVID-19 Pandemic https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1007/s11420-020-09800-5
