A number of physical therapy clinics, ourselves included, adopted virtual therapy appointments as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Offering virtual appointments allowed us to continue to provide care to patients who needed it most, and it allowed both patients and providers to help slow the spread of the contagious virus. However, while many clinics adopted virtual visits as a direct result of the pandemic, most will continue to offer them long after the pandemic because of the benefits they offer. In today’s blog, we take a closer look at the benefits of a virtual physical therapy program.
Reasons to Consider A Virtual Physical Therapy Program
Besides helping to decrease in-person contact and the potential spread of the COVID-19 virus, virtual physical therapy programs are beneficial to the patient in a number of ways. Here’s why you may want to adopt a virtual physical therapy program should you need PT in the future.
- More Access To Physical Therapists – If you decide to go virtual with your physical therapy routine, you’ll automatically have access to a number of different therapists to choose from. You won’t just be limited to the one therapy clinic within 20 minutes of your home. Connecting online eliminates the distance factor in receiving care, meaning you can find a better fit for your PT needs without needing to drive two hours round trip to receive care.
- Save Time – Similarly, you’ll be able to save a lot of time with your commute if you take your PT routine online. Instead of dealing with rush hour traffic or icy road conditions to get to and from your appointment, all you need is a phone or computer and an internet or mobile connection and you can meet with your PT from wherever you are. Considering most programs require weeks or months of therapy, going virtual with your care can save you countless hours of drive time (not to mention gas money!).
- Convenient – It’s also very convenient to go virtual with a physical therapy routine. Because you don’t need to worry about finding time to get to and from the clinic, you can have a little more freedom to schedule your visits into your daily life. Normally, you may not have time to get to the clinic after dropping your child off at soccer practice, or you may have to wait for your spouse to get home to watch the kids because you can’t leave them unattended or bring them to your appointment. With a virtual visit, you can see a PT when you have 45 minutes of free time or while the kids are entertained in the other room without needing to leave the house. You no longer need to plan your life around your PT sessions because they’ll fit into your schedule more easily if you go virtual.
- Same Benefits – One of the biggest reasons we’ve heard as to why patients may be hesitant to pursue virtual PT is because they believe their level of care may suffer. However, studies have shown that that’s simply not true. The majority of patients experience the same level of care regardless of whatever therapy route they pursue, and we strive to provide each patient with a very high level of care. It may be helpful to meet your PT in person for the first session so that they can get a better baseline of your abilities and your injuries, but after that, you can take comfort in knowing that you’ll receive the same great care through a virtual visit. Talk to your care team if you have concerns or questions about their ability to provide you with a high level of care through virtual consultations.
- Improved Technique – Finally, many patients are hesitant to jump into a home-based PT routine because they are unsure if they are doing the exercises correctly. But if you have access to a physical therapist from the comfort of your home, we can ensure you’re doing your exercises right and getting the intended benefits from the routine. Your technique and even your physical recovery can benefit from virtually consulting with a therapist to improve your home-based PT routine.
So if you’d like to learn more about virtual physical therapy appointments, or to see if they’d be right for you, reach out to the team at OrthoRehab Specialists today.
PT of Costa Rican National Soccer Team for 2007 World Cup in Victoria, CAN. Clinical Instructor for University of Minnesota Doctor of Physical Therapy Affiliations
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