Physiotherapy

Physiotherapy - "treatment of a disease, injury, deformity, or weakness by massaging, exercises, heat etc."
© Oxford English Dictionary.

Physiotherapy is now a huge area of Medicine in it's own right and so there is far too much to be able to cover all the aspects of it here. Physiotherapists are now also seen as having a preventative role as well. They are therefore happy to see people so discuss such things as the layout of their desk, and the ergonomics of their office spaces. This can help to reduce the problems due to using computer monitors and keyboards, sitting at the wrong height with regard to their desk or workstation. They can also help with education about manual handling and how to reduce back strain.

Sports injuries are also a large part of their work now - we are all trying to look after ourselves and so we try to do more sport and exercise. This can result in muscle strains and sprains and joint injuries. Physiotherapy can help here in two ways - by advice on prevention of common injuries in the first place (correct warming up exercises and attention to some aspects of how the sport is carried out) and secondly on treatment should an injury or accident happen.

People often ask what sort of conditions they should go to the Physiotherapist with. Well, just about any muscular, bone or joint problem may benefit from Physiotherapy. If you are not sure then please either ask the Physiotherapist or your Doctor.

Healthcare Physiotherapy

We have a Physiotherapist at the Rohais Health Centre called John Broderick. He is very happy to see any injuries and also to have a consultation with you if you would like to discuss fitness, how to reduce the chance of injury or to discuss some exercises for you to do if you feel that you have a weakness in a particular muscle group or joint.

John is also trained to perform Acupuncture. He only uses this for pain relief, and not for other things (such as giving up smoking). It can work well for painful backs, shoulders and necks. Some people who cannot tolerate any form of manual therapy can benefit from Acupuncture.

John is also happy to discuss postural problems - if you feel that the way your are doing things at work is causing some pain or problems then he may be able to help. He can teach you how to carry out exercises and adjust the layout of things at work to help.

Where does Physiotherapy fit in ?

Some people may find that for a particular condition they get a lot of benefit from Physiotherapy. On the other hand, another person may not seem to make as much progress. It is therefore important to remember that some patients may respond better to Osteopathy, or another form of therapy. We have two osteopaths who work between St Martins and Cobo. Please see the Osteopathy page for more details.

Insurance

Finally, a word about insurance. Some of the insurance companies will not pay for Physiotherapy unless you have been referred by your Doctor. Also, some of them may have a limit about how much you can spend on Physiotherapy. This can vary from one insurance company to another, and also can vary within the same company depending on the type of cover that you have and any exclusions that may be in operation on the Policy. We would therefore stress that it is important to check with the Customer Services Department at your insurance before you commit yourself to the Physiotherapy to make sure that they are going to cover the treatment. We would stress that this is completely beyond our control and is up to your insurance company.

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