Reflection

Today's post is a reflection on what I have learned so far within Physical Therapy. Where do I start? Physical Therapy comes in many different forms and styles for different people. The main types of Physical Therapy are Neurological Therapy, Orthopedic Therapy,Geriatric Therapy, and Pediatric Therapy. Physical Therapy in general is not for any certain age group or for any certain types of injuries. It ranges any where from sports injuries to promoting better posture. Physical Therapy is a growing field and it will continue to grow with the years coming. One of the biggest thing I have learned about what it means to be a Physical Therapist is that the patient comes first, no matter what. With new technology  you can use the Microsoft "Kinect" and go through Physical Therapy in your home. One big thing that I have learned is that Physical Therapy is always changing and there are always new ways and strategies to complete ones goals.

Kinesiology

As you may already know, I am going to school to study Kinesiology in hopes to become a Physical Therapist. This semester I am currently enrolled in one Kinesiology course, Kin 125. This course is about CPR and First Aid for many different situations. There is a lot of hands on practice involved in this class and it is one of the main things I like about it.

Being involved in hands on practice is very much different than learning out of a book or from online research. Instead of just putting new words and ideas in your head you are practicing those ideas and actually doing them. It is a lot more fun too! Some of the hands on practices that are done throughout this class are CPR, emergency ventilation s, caring for fractured bones and learning how to splint them correctly and safely. As of now I am still interested in Kinesiology. One in three college students change their major, so we will see what happens.

Parental involvement: Good/Bad?

Throughout the practice of Physical Therapy a recurring question kept popping up. Is parental involvement in Physical Therapy a good thing or is bad? Naturally, there are two opposing sides to this question. The reasons why people are against parental involvement within a kids physical therapy is because they believe the parent may "interfere" with the child's' therapy. It is also thought that the child will get to distracted with the parent hanging around asking questions and trying to help out. On the opposite end of the spectrum. People have been performing studies that show training with a child's mother present is as effective as the child training with just a Physical Therapist or Physical Therapist Assistant. These studies also suggest that working with parents can accomplish the overall goal of physical therapy in a shorter time period. There are many opinions on this controversy, what is yours?

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2732325

Neurological Therapy

Neurological Therapy is one of many types of physical therapy. Neurological Therapy might be used for patients who have Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease, Stroke, or spinal cord injuries. It is important to have physical therapy if you have a neurological disease. The brain and spinal cord are the centers of control for both movement and sensations. "An injury to a person's brain or spinal cord may cause death of cells which control specific movements and sensations, leading to a loss of function."(Disable World, P2) Neurological disorders affect a persons nervous system and can happen to people of all age groups.
 
Physical Therapy can help a person remain to perform certain activities which helps to prevent a loss of function. After an injury occurs, there is a time period where a persons cells that remained uninjured retain the ability to learn how to control the functions that have been lost. Physical Therapists' can help you jump on that time period and get your functions back safely and correctly.

"Neurological Therapy - Facts and Information." Neurological Therapy - Facts and Information. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Oct. 2012. <http://www.disabled-world.com/medical/rehabilitation/therapy/neurological-therapy.php>.

Evaluating Sources

While researching online I found a interesting scholarly article on "Physical Therapy as a means to optimize posture and voice parameters in student classical singers." This is more of an experiment than an argument.

Correct posture is very important to a singer. It can change the sound of your voice and its strength. You can tell a huge difference from slouching down in a chair and singing and then sitting up right and back straight with your shoulders relaxed.

This experiment was performed on a  26 year old female classical singing student, and its aim was to improve the singers posture and voice parameters. The experiment showed great results. After four months of an individual rehabilitation program her postural alignment improved and her vocal dynamic and pitch range extended with smoother curves connecting the measuring points.

This experiment argues that postural alignment can be changed within four months and could possibly influence some of your voice parameters, but one experiment on one person is not enough to make this a fact. There needs to be many more experiments conducted on a wide variety of singers to see if these findings can be generalized.

"Result Filters." National Center for Biotechnology Information. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2012. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20207108>.

National Physical Therapy Month

Did you know that October is National Physical Therapy month? "Every October the APTA celebrates National Physical Therapy Month, whose primary goal is to raise awareness of the crucial role of Physical Therapists and Physical Therapist Assistants play in helping people reduce pain, improve their mobility, and live active and healthy lives."(SFGate, P2) The focus of this years National Physical Therapy Month is sport injury prevention. The main way to prevent long term sport injuries is learning to play the sport the correct way. You do this by starting young with the kids. They need to be taught the right way right off the bat. Like learning to tackle the right way in pee wee football, and teaching not to lead with the head, or the correct body position when fielding a ground ball.
This October the APTA will also be launching their first "Fit After 50" campaign. This is a program that provides daily tips and resources for Therapists working with the baby-boomer patients. The top five workouts for the baby boomers are:

1. Cardio- running, walking, swimming, biking. At least 30 min. a day

2. Strength Training- push ups, resistance bands, bicep curls. At least 30-45 min. twice a week

3. Flexibility Training- head circles, calf stretching, hamstring stretching. 10 min. a day

4. Balance Training- standing on one leg, tippy-toes. Only need 3 min. a day

5. Core Training- only need a few min. a day of abdominal exercises

"Celebrate National Physical Therapy Month and "Get Fit After 50" with the American Physical Therapy Association and HomeCEUConnection.com." SFGate. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2012. <http://www.sfgate.com/business/prweb/article/Celebrate-National-Physical-Therapy-Month-and-3918422.php>.

Code of Ethics

While looking online to find more information on Physical Therapy I came across the "Code of Ethics for the Physical Therapist" written and put together by the American Physical Therapy Association. While skimming over the code of ethics one section jumped out at me most.

 Physical therapists shall respect the inherent dignity and rights of all individuals
(Core Values: Compassion, integrity)

This section goes on to talk about respecting everyone no matter their religion, race, nationality, etc. and mentions that Physical therapists should recognize their own biases and not discriminate against others in their own field of practice and their education.
What made this section jump out at me the most is how I can relate my own beliefs and ethics to it. I find it offensive when people discriminate against others because they are of different ethnicity, religion, race, etc. I could go on forever. We are all human and deserve to be treated equally.

 I also like how they put the word Compassion in their Core Values. I believe that in order to become a good Physical Therapist or become good at any occupation in the medical field one needs to have compassion.  How can you try and help someone when you do not have the desire to alleviate their suffering. You can't! In my Kinesiology class I was taught that you need the three "C"s when taking care of a victim. They are Confidence, Competence, and Compassion. Compassion relates to many fields of study and it is a big key to your success, and the success of others.