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We see the results all the time but the general public don’t get to see or hear about it. GET PT 1st!
We see the results all the time, but the general public don’t get to see or hear about it. The concept of seeing your physical therapist first for non-traumatic injuries quite often leads to a substantial cost savings in your medical care, understanding what is going on with the injury and what you should do next, getting an immediate referral to a competent orthopedist of another specialist based on the findings and most important is same day treatment and relief of pain syndrome.
Even though you have been able to see a physical therapist directly without a referral since 2003, consumers of healthcare in New Jersey still will wait weeks to see an orthopedic surgeon, get evaluated for 5 minutes, get orders for an expensive MRI which may not be needed and not always approved, medication and of course a referral to physical therapy. Obviously if your injury is traumatic with the possibility of fracture, has an open wound, hot and swollen joint and severe pain, you should of course call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.
What we are describing here are the routine injuries or musculoskeletal pain syndromes that develop and you want immediate relief, get a comprehensive evaluation and learn when you need to do to get better. Examples are things like acute low back pain, stiff neck with spasm and difficulty turning, pain in your elbow when grasping items, shoulder pain and weakness that develops for no reason after a tennis or pickleball game, knee pain and stiffness, achilles or heel pain making walking difficult or an ankle sprain to name just a few.
Once you develop a relationship with a highly skilled physical therapy practice and you have your own PT, this can be your point person for any pain syndrome or injury that develops. Here at db OrthoPT (www.dborthopt.com) we take great pride in hundreds of 5 star reviews where people have recognized our highly trained Doctors of Physical Therapy who they can communicate with directly when a problem develops.
An example of how this successfully helps patients occurred recently. A former patient reached out to his Physical Therapist, Dr. David Bertone, PT, DPT, OCS to ask for his advice following the development of severe heel pain with difficulty walking following a tennis game and treadmill walking sessions. The patient was having severe pain and was asking for a recommendation on which physician to see. Dr. Bertone reviewed his complaints on a HIPPA compliant text messaging system used at db OrthoPT and immediately knew he could help him that day. An appointment was made, the evaluation was completed and findings reviewed with the patient. The patient presented with findings consistent with acute achilles tendinitis because of having point tenderness where the achilles attaches to the heel bone, swelling, difficulty walking and limited mobility of the ankle. Treatment was immediately initiated consisting of swelling control using electrical stimulation, vasopneumatic ice therapy, ultrasound, massage, gentle stretching, manual resisted strengthening and application of kinesiotape. The patient was advised to use a heel lift in his shoe ad was referred to an area foot/ankle fellowship trained orthopedic surgeon for a medical diagnosis the next day after a report was sent to the physician.
The next day the patient reported feeling 75% better, was able to walk with much less pain, he was grateful for the orthopedic recommendation who confirmed the diagnosis of achilles tendinitis, recommended continued therapy and assured the patient his prognosis was good. The orthopedist also told the patient that the immediate physical therapy was a great decision! The patient was so happy, he decided to immediately write the following google review:
“I feel compelled to share a personal experience that I had with Dr. Dave Bertone at DB Ortho PT. On Monday morning, I hobbled my way into Dave’s office, dealing with excruciating pain in my Achilles. I opted to see Dave prior to seeing an orthopedist and with no referral required and I’m incredibly glad I did. After just one visit, the treatment I received reduced my pain by about 75%. The care was outstanding—professional, targeted, and effective. I truly believe that if I had gone to an orthopedist first, I would have spent a couple of weeks in pain before eventually being referred to physical therapy anyway. Seeing Dave right away made all the difference. I highly recommend him to anyone dealing with similar issues. I can’t thank you enough DB!”
db OrthoPT was established in 2008 to provide highly skilled physical therapy in the community and has expanded with two state of the art locations in Red Bank and Manalapan, NJ. db OrthoPT is owned and operated by physical therapists, not a large corporation or private equity controlled organization in order to provide the most advanced treatment possible with ownership onsite. The practice has nine physical therapists, all are Doctors of Physical Therapy and four are Board Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialists with other advanced certifications and skills. Learn more at www.dborthopt.com or send an email to dbertone@dborthopt.com.
