Pain Care & Telehealth
How can a physio assess and treat without using their hands?
Physiotherapy has evolved beyond needing to use touch for assessment and treatment. What you tell us; your answers to specific questions; and what we can see are all used to form a diagnosis. The key to physiotherapy treatment is listening and education. It is important for us to hear what your concerns are and what is important to you. Then we can share with you what we know to be the current knowledge and evidence on pain and best strategies for taking care of it. Whilst hands on treatment sometimes provides short term benefit, you can be taught ways to do this independently at home. It is all about empowering you to self-manage long term. We really do not need to lift a finger!
From the comfort of your own home or personal space
It can be confronting going to a clinic, meeting a clinician and then sharing some personal information. Feedback from those who have used Telehealth in the past is that they have felt more relaxed and comfortable to undertake an assessment from their home or other personal space. Some people find it physically and emotionally exhausting to travel to and from an appointment. The beauty of a video consultation is that you do not have to go further than your own living room or kitchen. Leaving you with more time and energy to do the things that are important to you. No frustrations with trying to find a park, and no need to stress about traffic or being late for your appointment!
Nothing but time to talk, listen and problem solve
In a video consultation, there are no expectations for hands on or passive treatment meaning the whole appointment time is dedicated to listening to you; understanding your concerns and what’s important to you; and working with you to develop strategies to assist you to accomplish your goals. The aim is to empower you to be independent and not feel that you have to rely on seeing a health professional for hands on treatment. This is achievable over a small number of sessions. With a pain care approach, there is no need for a weekly or monthly appointment in your calendar!
The PainCare approach
- Assessment
What you tell us is the most important part of the assessment. This allows us to understand the history of your pain; what might be contributing to it; what strategies you have tried previously; what impact the pain has had on your life; and what your expectations of treatment are. We can observe the way you move as you perform some functional movements. We will also ask you some specific questions as part of screening you for any serious conditions. If there is a concern, you will be referred to your doctor for further investigation or specialist input.
- Education
The sessions are dedicated to providing education on understanding pain, addressing potential unhelpful beliefs and behaviours, improving your confidence, addressing sleep and setting goals. A key strategy you will be taught is how to pace your exercise and activities so that you are not underdoing or overdoing things. Pacing physical activity helps you to improve your physical condition, increase your strength and experience less pain.
- Exercise
We will set you up with an exercise program via an online system. You download the free app and you will be able to see videos and explanations of the exercises. You can communicate how your are going with your exercises via the app. These exercises will be progressively increased as you adapt.
