DEAR ERI COMMUNITY
Pamela Posts:
Hi
My clinic has been hearing that doctors are referring patients with concussions for physical therapy. Is anyone out there doing rehab for concussions that is not just following a return to play per impact? I know PTs work with patients who develop post concussion syndrome but what is being done by PTs to rehabilitate concussions in the acute stages?
Thanks!
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Mobilizing the Medically Complex ICU and Acute Care Patient
with Ellen Hillegass
Therapists are often challenged when presented with complex acute care patients who may have cardiovascular and/or pulmonary dysfunction or complications in addition to other medical conditions. Mobilizing these complex patients safely requires integration of the implications of lab values, diagnostic test results, patient history, medications and equipment. Signs of patient instability and when and how to modify or terminate treatment will be discussed. This course provides therapists with the knowledge, problem solving skills, and all the red flags for assessing mobility as well as the tools to develop safe and appropriate intervention programs for patients in acute care no matter their diagnosis.
This course is designed for PT’s OT’s SLPs and Assistants working with acute care patients in all practice settings
January 17-18, 2014 – San Antonio, TX
May 3-4, 2014 – Staten Island, NY
September 12-13, 2014 – Portsmouth, NH
Please click here for course details, a brochure or to register
“Instructor is a real teacher and a clinician, not just a presentor or speaker.” – Physical Therapist
“Ellen is very informative and easy to listen to. Thank you!” – Physical Therapist Assistant
“Presentor was great and easy to approach. Spends one-on-one time with participants.” – Occupational Therapist
“Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!! What a wonderful course for the acute care therapist! This course covers so many of the areas in which I or other therapists in my department have had questions. I would recommend this course for all acute care therapists no matter the number of years of experience!” – Physical Therapis
]]>Distinguished ERI Faculty Member, Debra Dickson asks a question of school therapists:
DEAR ERI COMMUNITY: We have a question regarding physician orders for PT services for children in school systems. Here in CT we are able to do 8 visits and then are required to obtain a script. We have 2 questions:
1. Is the same required when seeing a child in a school setting? Are school guidelines different? We have been unsuccessful in getting an answer from the State Board.
2. We have always gotten them, however, lately we have been servicing a school where parents do not show up for meetings and we have been unable to obtain a script or even a release of information so we can obtain a script ourselves. Has anyone else had this difficulty and do you stop seeing a child when the school team has recommended services? It seems we are in a legal dilemma as the IEP document is a legal document that must be fulfilled yet legally we are required to have the paperwork from the physician to fulfill those services. How have others handled this?
Louis Posts:
DEAR ERI COMMUNITY: A discriminant, reliable and valid perturbation-based fall assessment tool, (Spring Scale Test) has been reported by DePasquale and Toscano in 2000 JGPT. Predicated on repeated incremental predictable perturbations, (RIPPS), the Spring Scale Test (SST) seeks to quantify limits of non-stepping and stepping postural responses expressed as percent of total body weight ( % TBW). Validated on an active independent-living older adult sample, the SST 10 % TBW performance measure was the most discriminant to fall history compared to TUGT, gait speed, single limb and tandem stance time timed performance measures. Pardassanay, Pai and others have recently concluded that more challenging, sensitive and responsive tests are needed for active older adult fall risk and intervention assessment. Mansfield recently concluded that physical therapists do not routinely assess reactive balance. Altered stepping and adaptation to perturbations is associated with fall risk. The SST is a feasible, safe and evidence-based tool, providing therapists with a clinical tool capable of quantifying threshold and stepping limits based upon body weight.
Please share the assessment tools you use for balance.
]]> We are pleased to announce Samantha as the winner of our blog competition. She can attend one of our two day courses for free.
Samantha asked for advice for a challenging case she was involved with and received tremendous constructive advice and suggestions from fellow therapists.
Please visit the thread here:
http://www.educationresourcesinc.com/case-challenges-and-solutions-for-pt-ot-and-slp/clinical-challenges-and-solutions-pediatrics/therapy-autism-jra-tha
Samantha would like to thank everyone for their advice:
Thank you for the numerous responses regarding this specific patient. I read over all of the ideas that were presented while treating the patient which were all very helpful! As far as treatment was concerned, the parents were heavily incorporated into the session, which they appreciated greatly. I was informed, from the parents, that the use of the Ipad was a large motivator for participation from the child. The use of the Ipad gave the patient interest in ambulation. The use of the visual/audio stimulus was also helpful with education regarding hip precautions. As far was weight bearing status was concerned, I spoke with the primary orthopedic team and the surgeon who performed the surgery regarding the difficulties that were encountered during therapy session, he decided that NWB would be more appropriate at this time secondary to difficulty maintaining TDWB. We were able to facilitate NWB status through the use of a pediatric walker and with the help from parents when ambulating. The patient was to follow up in OP PT with a pediatric orthopedic PT with long-standing experience in the realm of complex patients. As far as maintaining NWB per the time frame of the surgeon, the plan is for OP PT to facilitate the use of the device that is more appropriate for the patient. Thanks again for all your help! It was pleasure to read through responses from such experienced therapists and begin to integrate these ideas into my own repertoire of treatment techniques.
Congratulations Samantha!
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