If you or a loved one is experiencing discomfort and are in search of treatment and relief, you’ve come to the right place!
We know that pain can strike at any time, whether from an injury, illness, stress or just the passage of time affecting the body as it ages. Primal Physiotherapy is devoted to providing warm, caring service for patients in Australia, from Braybrook to Camberwell to Taylors Hill and we welcome the opportunity to treat you.
Chances are you’ve heard about physiotherapy but you’re not quite sure what happens when you visit a physio’s office. Here are five great points for you to consider, before your first appointment.
1.What is a Physiotherapist?
A physiotherapist is a healthcare professional who has undergone rigorous training and has been certified to provide service to patients. Physiotherapists, also referred to as physical therapists, treat patients to help them regain or improve their ability to move, maintain balance and minimize any pain.
For individuals who prefer to avoid surgery and want a drug-free method for pain management, physiotherapy is an ideal solution to get back on the road to health.
As WebMD put it, “They take a holistic (whole-body) approach, addressing not only the physical aspects of your well-being, but also your emotional, psychological, and social well-being. They work at all stages of healthcare, including prevention, education, intervention, rehabilitation, and treatment.”
What is the difference between a Physiotherapist and a Chiropractor?
Many individuals wonder, “what is the difference between physiotherapy and chiropractic treatment?” To begin, both professions are focused on reducing pain and improving a patient’s range of movement and daily function. Physiotherapy focuses on achieving pain-free movement and teach patients how regain mobility and function through avenues of exercises and stretches.
Chiropractors prioritise fixing misalignments in the spine. Chiropractors perform manipulation to their patients, while physiotherapists teach patients how to utilise their muscles more efficiently and effectively. Generally, a chiropractor will work out of an office with an examination room with equipment for spinal manipulations and adjustments, while a physio can come to the patient’s home, healthcare setting or rehabilitation gym.
What is the difference between a Physiotherapist and an Occupational Therapist?
Conversely, people mistake Occupational Therapy with Physiotherapy. According to Healthline, it differs from occupational therapy, which has a goal of normalising fine motor skills with daily tasks, providing work and home safety and equipment hire to better support the home or workplace rather than treating the patient’s entire body mechanics and improving functionality in global tasks such as walking, lifting, or sports.
What is the difference between a Physiotherapist and an Osteo?
Another type of professional who works with patients in pain or who lack full freedom of movement is known as an osteopath. The main difference between a physio and an osteopath are osteopaths concentrate on treatment with their hands, while a physio uses a combination of hands and knowledge of body mechanics to augment treatment.
2.What Does a Physiotherapist Specialise In?
Your physiotherapist will specialise in preventing pain as well as treatment and rehabilitation.
As the College of Physiotherapists of Ontario noted, major problems that physiotherapists treat include:
* Back and neck pain originating from skeletal or musculature issues
* Mobility issues following the injury to the spine or brain
* Difficulty moving because of ailments such as multiple sclerosis or Parkinson’s disease
* Asthma and other respiratory conditions
* Decrease in muscle strength, tiredness or swelling that occurs during treatment for conditions such as cancer
* Childbirth-induced issues in the pelvis, such as bladder or bowel control
* Ligaments, muscles, joints or bones are in pain because of an accident or arthritis
* Cardiovascular rehabilitation
This list is by no means comprehensive and is offered to provide an overview. If you happen to have a condition not mentioned here, please contact our office to learn how we can help.
3.Why Is Physiotherapy Important?
The ability to move about freely without pain is of paramount importance. People should recognise the value of physiotherapy because of its potential to help individuals who are suffering, without requiring painful surgery or running the risk of becoming addicted to prescription opiate pain medicines.
It has implications for people in all walks of life. For athletes who have become injured on the playing field or while practicing, physiotherapy promises to get them back up and running sooner, with special customised exercises and stretches devised by the physio to maintain freedom of movement going forward.
Individuals who have been injured on the job will need to arrange for physiotherapy as soon as possible, so they can regain their health and freedom of motion at work.
A trained physiotherapist provides a valuable service in assessing a victim of an accident and coming up with a customised treatment plan. This same expertise is also used to treat patients who have come off of surgery and now need help with regaining strength and learning how to move arms and legs without getting injured. Sometimes a doctor will refer a patient to a physio to get help in using crutches as they re-learn how to walk after an accident or surgery.
And anyone who has noticed that aches and pains associated with ageing or work from home are becoming more pronounced as the years go by will certainly find physiotherapy an important tool for wellness.
4.How Long Does it Take to Become a Physiotherapist in Australia?
You may be curious about how long it takes to become a physiotherapist in Australia so you can know more about the background of the physio who will treat you, or because you are interested in becoming a physiotherapist yourself.
Students can look forward to plenty of opportunities to provide service in their community as a physio. The number of people who will be working in physiotherapy will exceed 30,000 by the year 2023, up from about 25,000 in 2018, according to Open Colleges citing information from Job Outlook Australia. Physiotherapists now have an average age of 35, and most (some 67%) are female. They work approximately 42 hours per week on average. Open College states that it takes at least 4-7 years before you can become a physiotherapist in Australia depending if you have an undergraduate or post-graduate degree in Physiotherapy.
Requirements for working in this profession include applying and registering for the Physiotherapy Board of Australia and the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency. You should anticipate needing to undergo a national police background check, as well as a working with children and vulnerable people check.
Once a physiotherapist has officially been certified for work in Australia, there is no opportunity to rest on laurels. A physio must finish a minimum of 20 hours of Continued Professional Development (CPD) every year. That’s one way the government ensures the profession remains properly regulated and that physiotherapists always follow current best practices.
5. What Types of Treatments Do Physiotherapist Provide?
Some of the most common queries we receive at Primal Physiotherapy include “will physiotherapy help lower back pain?” and “will physiotherapy help arthritis?” The answer to both questions is a resounding “yes!” Patients come in to obtain physiotherapy for back pain, to bring an aching knee back to proper functioning again or when they are in search of physiotherapy to strengthen their knee.
Your visit to the physiotherapist will typically begin with us taking your medical history and discussing the issue that’s currently bothering you. The physio will evaluate your function and mobility and level of reported pain or discomfort. Then, it’s time to create an individualized plan to treat you.
Treatment modalities include teaching you how to do different stretches and exercises to improve your strength, stability and mobility. Another form of treatment may include deep tissue massage, dry needling or cupping. You also may be instructed on how to better understand your body to reduce the risk of re-injury.
Ready to Get Started With Physiotherapy? Connect With Primal Physiotherapy Today!
We hope this introduction to what’s involved in physiotherapy is useful and answers any questions you might have. If you’re ready to come in for treatment now or would like more information about our approach to physiotherapy, please connect with Primal Physiotherapy today. We are looking forward to hearing from you!
Our Locations
Primal Physiotherapy Braybrook
10/227 Ballarat Rd
Braybrook VIC 3019
(03) 9995 8044
https://primalphysiotherapy.com.au/braybrook
Primal Physiotherapy Taylors Hill
127 Gourlay Rd
Taylors Hill VIC 3037
(03) 8315 7182
https://primalphysiotherapy.com.au/taylors-hill
Primal Physiotherapy Camberwell
782 Burke Rd
Camberwell VIC 3124
(03) 9973 3090
https://primalphysiotherapy.com.au/camberwell