Online Physiotherapy Treatments

Over the past few weeks, we have been answering the question on how to offer physiotherapy and help people get through their injuries and pain without being in the same room as them. We have quickly had to face the challenge of answering the questions of how this would look, and how we can show the value of telerehabilitation (online physiotherapy) to a world that had never heard of it just weeks earlier. After a few sessions this no longer felt like a challenge. We realized that our form of physiotherapy treatment was almost seamlessly able to go online.

Since opening the doors to our clinic in 2013, our focus has been to provide physiotherapy that was individualized which could only be done in our one-on-one visits. Along with this, we make it our goal to empower our patients with the best evidence-based treatments in order to help them get better and stay better. Evidence actually does support educating patients and providing them with the correct exercises and self management more than simply performing passive modalities. Surprisingly, to many patients this treatment approach looked different than many other commonly observed clinical practices.

The great news has been that our method of treating has seamlessly gone online. We have been able to meet our clients and empower them screen to screen with the same benefits as in person. The struggle of coaching through exercises, is making us more fit as we work through all the motions and movements with our patients from the comfort of our own homes.  This transition to online treatments hasn’t been without new challenges, such as figuring out initial setup passwords, but this is similar to any new connection. We have just given additional buffer time between visits like we would do when trying to video conference with our family for the first time.

Overall, we have seen the first 5 weeks for online treatment become a virtual success. It is something we will continue to provide until we are able to resume in-person treatments.  It is our desire to continue offering this form of treatment afterwards, as arguably with proper communication, education, and patient empowering optimal rehabilitation can be accomplished online, at any time. 

Physiotherapist is performing an online physio visit with a patient who is at home.