What does a typical day look like? I arrive at the facility at 6:50 A.M, 10 minutes before my first patient. If I have not already planned for my first scheduled patient the day before, I review the previous note to familiarize myself on their condition, precautions, goals, progress, and areas of concern (I also check to see if they are due for measurements so I can send a note to the MD on their progress). After I have reviewed the previous note, I invite the patient back and usually start their session with a physical agent modality or aerobic conditioning to prep the body for participation in therapy. I often use Fluidotherapy, Paraffin, moist heat pack, or the arm bike depending on the condition. After they are warmed up I usually take measurements if needed or begin manual therapy, therapeutic activities, neuromuscular re-education, or therapeutic exercise to promote functional use of the injured body part for improved performance with daily occupations or work related tasks. This setting uses the biomechanical approach. I usually see 1-2 patients an hour and my days can be 8-12 hours long (including lunch). I document throughout the day, and usually do not leave with any outstanding or incomplete documentation unless the day is super busy. Patients who require splints were often seen by my CI, however, I did get to construct several splints during down time, including a trigger finger splint for a patient during my last month at Select. If we do have cancellations, that down time is used for practice with manual techniques, splinting, studying, my capstone, or prepping for the following day or patient.

During my Level 2B Fieldwork we get to see some of my clients, both pedi and adults, in the pool! Did you know that you don’t need to be certified in aquatic therapy in order take your clients into the pool? The pool is used as a functional modality, much like the same way we would use NMES or Ultrasound with a client. Visit my blog and take a look at some of the principles of of pool itself!