Hcs 212 Healthcare Resources - Rehabilitation Services
Rehabilitation Centers: An Integral Part of Patient Care
HCS 212
Rehabilitation Centers: An Integral Part of Patient Care
Rehabilitation centers are designed to help “restore some or all of a patient’s physical, sensory and mental capabilities that were lost due to injury, illness or disease” (Farlex, 2012). Many doctors will prescribe rehabilitation services after a patient has suffered through an amputation, neurological issues, a variety of orthopedic injuries, spinal cord injuries, stroke or other traumatic brain injuries.
Patients can be treated in either an inpatient or outpatient setting. This normally depends on the severity of their injury or illness. A patient who has suffered a stroke, for example will be treated within the hospital by therapists before being discharged and prescribed outpatient therapy. Stroke patients are also treated under more than one rehabilitation discipline. This means that they will see not only a licensed physical therapist but in many cases, an occupational and speech therapist as well.
There are two main distinctions between physical therapists, orthopedic, neurological and pediatric. Orthopedic therapists work with a number of different diagnoses but the majority of their patients suffer from a muscle, joint or spinal injury. Advancements in medicine have allowed surgeons to perform joint replacement surgeries. Patients who have had a total knee, hip or shoulder replacement will more often than not end up in the hands of a physical therapist.
According to the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) those therapists who decide to become a neurological physical therapist will specialize “in the evaluation and treatment of individuals with movement problems due to disease or injury of the nervous system” (2012). These conditions include traumatic brain injuries, stroke patients, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease and vestibular disorders that can cause dizziness and imbalance. Regardless of their
HCS 212
Rehabilitation Centers: An Integral Part of Patient Care
Rehabilitation centers are designed to help “restore some or all of a patient’s physical, sensory and mental capabilities that were lost due to injury, illness or disease” (Farlex, 2012). Many doctors will prescribe rehabilitation services after a patient has suffered through an amputation, neurological issues, a variety of orthopedic injuries, spinal cord injuries, stroke or other traumatic brain injuries.
Patients can be treated in either an inpatient or outpatient setting. This normally depends on the severity of their injury or illness. A patient who has suffered a stroke, for example will be treated within the hospital by therapists before being discharged and prescribed outpatient therapy. Stroke patients are also treated under more than one rehabilitation discipline. This means that they will see not only a licensed physical therapist but in many cases, an occupational and speech therapist as well.
There are two main distinctions between physical therapists, orthopedic, neurological and pediatric. Orthopedic therapists work with a number of different diagnoses but the majority of their patients suffer from a muscle, joint or spinal injury. Advancements in medicine have allowed surgeons to perform joint replacement surgeries. Patients who have had a total knee, hip or shoulder replacement will more often than not end up in the hands of a physical therapist.
According to the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) those therapists who decide to become a neurological physical therapist will specialize “in the evaluation and treatment of individuals with movement problems due to disease or injury of the nervous system” (2012). These conditions include traumatic brain injuries, stroke patients, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease and vestibular disorders that can cause dizziness and imbalance. Regardless of their
References: Rehabilitation. (2012). In The Free Dictionary by Farlex. Retrieved from http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/rehabilitation Speech Pathology (2012). The Mayo School of Health Sciences. Retrieved from http://www.mayo.edu/mshs/careers/speech-pathology What is a Neurologic Therapist? (2012). American Physical Therapy Association. Retrieved from http://www.neuropt.org/index.cfm?objectid=ce822d72-a91d-4774- fc6db4ffdeb5e20a What is Occupational Therapy? (2012)