Physical Therapist: Helping Patients Perform To The Best Of Their Abilities
Ron Drainer was going to college for an undergraduate degree in psychology when he volunteered in the rehabilitation department at a local hospital. He “fell in love” with the physical therapy profession. After seeing how he could have an immediate affect on people’s lives, he earned a second bachelor’s degree in physical therapy.
Physical therapists are the experts in the examination and treatment of musculoskeletal and neuromuscular problems that affect patients’ movement and function in their daily lives. According to the American Physical Therapy Association, physical therapists work in various settings. Although many work in hospitals, others can be found in private physical therapy offices, rehabilitation centers, community health centers, nursing homes, home health agencies, corporate or industrial health centers, sports facilities, research institutions, schools, pediatric centers, and colleges and universities. Some physical therapists work as employees in these settings while others are self-employed as owners or partners in private practices.
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Physical therapy takes a personal and direct approach to meeting an individual’s health needs and wants, whether a patient’s goal is walking independently or breaking a high-jump record. For people with health problems resulting from injury or disease, the physical therapist assists in the recovery process to make them stronger, relieve their pain and help them to regain use of an affected limb. Physical therapists also help patients relearn daily activities of living, such as walking, dressing and bathing. By teaching the importance of fitness and showing people how to avoid hurting their bodies at work or play, physical therapists also seek to keep people well and safe from injury.
To design and supervise individualized conditioning programs, physical therapists complete extensive academic and clinical education. Preparation for entrance into a physical therapist education program includes courses in psychology, biology, physics, chemistry, statistics, English, professional writing and humanities. All professional programs include basic and clinical medical science courses and emphasize the theory and practice of physical therapy. The curriculum includes opportunities to apply and integrate theory through extensive clinical education in a variety of practice settings.
The APTA encourages students pursuing a career in physical therapy to enter the profession with a post-baccalaureate degree. This level of education will prepare physical therapists to better meet the changing needs of patients today and in tomorrow’s progressive health care system.
Drainer has worked as a physical therapist for more than 10 years. He first worked in an outpatient physical therapy office where he specialized in sports medicine. Now, Drainer works with rehabilitation patients at Des Peres Hospital in St. Louis County. He said his psychology degree has come in handy because it has helped him interact with patients who have very different attitudes.
“At the hospital, in an inpatient setting, I work with people who are getting up for the first time after surgery,” Drainer said. “There is typically a little apprehension and some discomfort. In an outpatient setting, I dealt with people about four weeks after surgery, so their pain levels were low and they could see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
Drainer also said his work with athletes, whether at the high school, collegiate or professional levels, also required a keen perception of the person.
“These are people who are used to competing at a certain level, some for their livelihood, and an injury and rehab are a scary thing for them,” he said.
Drainer works a typical eight-hour shift, and he sees as many as seven patients a day on the rehabilitation floor. He usually begins at 7 a.m., helping the nursing staff get patients dressed and ready for breakfast, before seeing them in the gym. He works with each patient twice a day, for an hour in the morning and another 30 minutes in the afternoon. Because of his background, he also works on acute-care floors and outpatient therapy.
To practice in Missouri, physical therapists must be licensed by the state at the end of their schooling. Licenses are renewable every two years, subject to maintaining good standing and completing 30 hours of continuing education, also every two years.
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