Physical therapy is a movement profession. We are undoubtedly the experts in movement, exercise, and function - and our professional training reflects this.
Subsequent to this, the vision of the American Physical Therapy Association is "transforming society by optimizing movement to improve the human experience". Let's take a moment to consider the meaning of this statement fully.
Since the dawn of mankind, an integral part of the human experience is function and movement. Neither of these are passive by definition.
In order to transform society, we need to focus on the active.
But there is a hypocrisy to be found deep within these words. If we are focusing on the active, then why do we continue to put such a heavy emphasis on passive interventions?
There are a myriad of common excuses that we can all find for not living the dream we so desire.
It is someone else's fault. I am unlucky.There is too much stress. I have too many exams coming up. I am not good enough.
But you know what? I hate to say it, but they are all just - excuses. More often than not, the real problem is simple.
Your own worst enemy is you. The best part, though, is that you are your own best friend and ally as well.
It is a question that I hear regularly when talking to clinicians and students: what do you do if MDT doesn't work?
The question usually causes me to shake my head and take a deep breath before venturing forth into a response. I wish I could say that it is only posed by those with little to no training in the method; however, I've heard this from more than a few MDT-credentialed clinicians over the years.
Let's start with the foundation for a response: MDT is not a treatment. It is a way of thinking.
Health care is chock full of a lot of telling. Telling the patient to do this or that. Telling the patient to not do something. There is a lot of telling going on around the health care world.
Health care has its share of intelligent people doing the telling. And I have no doubt that there are many that are telling patients a lot of good things.
But one problem exists. We mistakenly focus on adherence and compliance with all the telling and immediately assume that behavioral change goes right along with it. A faulty assumption, indeed.
There are certainly worse places to visit in October in Texas. A trip to Galveston for the Texas Physical Therapy Association's Annual Conference would be a nice break from preparing Anatomy practical exams for PT students, right? A little rest and relaxation - with a side order of walking along the Gulf Coast with the ocean and sand between my toes - would be welcomed.
Hold on, come back to the real world Allan. We're here for a conference, right?
Oh yes. The conference.
2014 was the 6th consecutive year that I have been invited to present at our Annual Conference. This year was the first time that I had a doubleheader: one session for the professional track ("The Role Of Social Media In Physical Therapy"), and one for the student track ("Form Follows Function: A Framework For Anatomy").
Without further adieu, here are a few thoughts from the experience.
It's all in the spin I suppose.
The headline was simple: "7 Myths About Physical Therapy". The press release from the American Physical Therapy Association was going to debunk some myths about physical therapy. How exciting, I thought.
Maybe this would set the record straight on any number of issues and misconceptions about our profession that exist in the public eye. Surely this would be a great opportunity for us to "Move Forward", yes?
And then, I read myth number one. It was, admittedly, hard for me to overlook.
Life. Love. The pursuit of happiness. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
It's a journey that takes us on a moment-to-moment adventure driven by countless motivating factors. Some are positive. Others are negative. We find ourselves either moving towards something good or away from something bad.
I don't think that many people would ever expend the time and effort to differentiate between the two. But how we view these motivators, at the most basic level, can directly impact our lives, our relationships, and our happiness.
Are you focusing on the presence of positives or the absence of negatives? The differences can be subtle but substantial.
Up to 60% of runners will sustain an injury within any given year. Poor running mechanics, in conjunction with poor, ineffective and outdated training methods, can pose a significant injury risk. "RunSmart" was written to address these issues in the running community.
"Running Injuries: Etiology And Recovery- Based Treatment" (co-author Bridget Clark, PT) appears in the third edition and fourth editions of "Clinical Orthopaedic Rehabilitation: A Team Approach" by Charles Giangarra, MD and Robert C. Manske, PT.
Allan Besselink, PT, DPT, Ph.D., Dip.MDT has a unique voice in the world of sports, education, and health care. Read more about Allan here.
Top 5 finalist in three categories: "Best Overall Blog", "Best PT Blog" and "Best Advocacy Blog".
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