- What can physical therapy do for me?
- Is the Aquatic Therapy Pool important?
- For pregnant women.
- Athletes! Both fit and injured.
- How easy is it to see someone?
- How to choose the right clinic.
- For physicians.
- For case managers or claims adjusters.
- For students.
What can
physical therapy do for me?
For many people pain is an issue avoided by self-imposed
limitations on daily activities. For example, although we
might visit the dentist once a year or so, if we had a
toothache we would be in there like a shot! Put that ache
somewhere else in the body and we ignore it or suffer it
with comments like, "I pulled a muscle" or "It's only
when I do this".
Pain is also notoriously tricky to pin down: an ache in
the shoulder or upper arm could be the result of a neck
problem. Your lower back may have a twinge because of
your foot; or your foot could be sore because of your
posture! Physical therapists understand all of these
possibilities and can eliminate distracting symptoms in
order to get to the cause of a problem.
And this is for relatively healthy people! More serious
health problems can result from sports injuries, both
past and present. And arthritis and other movement
limiting conditions, as a consequence of surgery or old
age, contribute to a lowered quality of life. In all of
these situations the physical therapist assists in a
recovery process to make people stronger, relieve pain,
or help to regain use of an affected limb.
Physical therapists also help in keeping people well in
their daily lives by teaching the importance of fitness
and showing people how to avoid hurting their bodies at
work or play. By designing and supervising individualized
exercise programs, physical therapists promote optimal
physical performance and help health-conscious people to
increase their fitness level, muscular strength and
endurance.
Is the
Aquatic Therapy Pool important?
Physical therapy can be started earlier in water than on
land. For people with weight or age issues, restricted
movement, or a recent and severe injury, an early start
has enormous implications for pain relief, earlier joint
movement and shorter healing times. The possibility of
being lowered by hydraulic chair lift into the ozone
cleansed, bath-warm water coupled with the intimate size
(about 13 feet x 6 feet) of the pool itself makes one
feel as if healing is starting straightaway!
Movement of afflicted joints is possible in water even
if there is pain when the same movement is attempted on
land. This is because water supports the body and reduces
stress to joints so muscles can be strengthened and toned
while the injury heals. The aim is to increase the blood
flow to the affected area in order to speed up the
healing process.
The ability of the water to provide gentle and even
resistance to the exercises prescribed by the PT allows
pre-injury movements and fitness levels to be maintained
as healing occurs. This means a quicker return to
pre-injury life.
For
pregnant women.
Supervised exercise in the Rehab Connections Aquatic
Therapy Pool will be of particular benefit for the
following reasons.
• The water supports the body all over;
• the water temperature ensures that neither
mother nor fetus become too hot or too cold;
• and the cardio-vascular workout allied to
specific muscular endurance goals is safe and
efficient.
Undertaken regularly, exercise in the pool will ensure
increased energy and stamina in the birth process; a
quicker post-natal recovery time; and increased muscle
strength in the months that follow.
Athletes!
Both fit and injured.
Whether in training or in rehab, the Aquatic Therapy pool
will improve physical condition. For example, sports
moves can be played against the current, recruiting all
relevant muscle groups with even resistance across the
whole body; this almost eliminates the risk of
injury.
With 30,000 gallons of water per minute coming at speeds
up to 6.5 mph, it is no wonder dozens of professional and
collegiate teams have their own pools!
Please telephone us to talk to an aquatic
exercise specialist.
How easy
is it to see someone?
In the state of Illinois all you have to do is
walk in to either the Homer Glen or
Mokena clinics. Or you can pick up the
phone to make an appointment.
Physical therapists are allowed to evaluate physical
conditions without a doctor's order; no referral is
needed. If the condition will respond to physical
therapy, Rehab Connections staff will be happy to explain
how they can help, tell you how long treatment might
take, and then write a note for your physician in order
to assist with obtaining a prescription. All treatments
are eligible for insurance.
Alternatively, you can ask your physician to provide you
with a prescription for physical therapy.
How to
choose the right clinic.
There are many physical therapy clinics in this area.
However there are advantages to visiting us at Rehab
Connections:
• You can be sure that we know our
stuff! Over 50 years combined physical therapy
experience. And we teach other licensed professionals,
specifically physical therapists! They come to our
continuing education courses
on clinical topics, exercise and anatomy; these are very
popular and well-respected with many "return students"
boosting the 10-fold increase since 2002. Double
assurance that we know what we are doing!
• Immediate access to the Aquatic
Therapy Pool, if appropriate, will aid
rehabilitation and potentially speed up recovery.
• Our investment in the therapy pool
demonstrates a similar investment in the quality
of our staff and a commitment to caring for our
community.
Choosing
Rehab Connections for your patient referrals.
• Sheryl Poremba and her colleagues have a
deserved reputation built on the
successful practice of physical therapy. This is
evidenced by the ability to invest in a SwimEx pool and a
second facility.
• The SwimEx Aquatic Therapy Pool offers a
complete isokinetic aquatic therapy
system. Patients in the initial stages of rehab
can begin aquatic therapy sooner than regular therapy due
to the buoyancy of water. The water counteracts gravity
and supplies support, thus reducing pain, spasm and
swelling.
• There are various levels of
aquatic therapy activity available, even in acute
stages of rehab. This helps to raise the morale
of the patient.
• You can show your patient measured
results as they graduate to progressive
weight-bearing protocols using increasing water
resistance. From there, aquatic therapy treatment can
extend into a full range of training and conditioning
progressing to land based rehab.
• Rehab Connections hold regular classes
on clinical topics, exercise and anatomy for
other licensed professionals demonstrating the confidence
Sheryl Poremba and her colleagues inspire in their peers.
Indeed this is evident in the fact that there is a very
high rate of "students" returning for other classes.
How is
Rehab Connections more useful than other PT clinics?
Rehab Connections is probably unique in the region in
that there is a certified case manager on
staff. This combines the understanding for the
progression of a case with the expertise of a tenured
physical therapist in effective treatment
• Twin locations in Homer Glen
and Mokena offer convenient access to all residents of
Cook, Kane, Kendall, DuPage, and Will counties in
Illinois as well as residents along the Indiana border.
This will ensure better compliance.
• The Aquatic Therapy Pool
allows an earlier start to treatment and faster results
could mean an earlier return to work.
This is good for the morale of the patient.
For
students.
Rehab Connections has active affiliations with several colleges and universities. We offer clinical experiences between two and nine weeks, working both under the direction of, and close supervision by, one of our PTs. Please get in touch if you are interested; we would welcome your inquiry.