Is Remote Physical Therapy Right For Me?

Key Points:

• The basic process of physical therapy does not vary much between in-person and remote PT
• Certain conditions and certain people respond very well to remote PT
• If you really need hands-on care, remote PT can still help you supercharge your results

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I get asked a lot whether remote physical therapy services are as effective as in-person PT. Although I may be biased, I believe that the answer to this question is “yes”. Not only do multiple studies support the use of telehealth for PT (Miller 2020, Hall 2021, Grona 2017), but I have had great success with it in my own patients. My biggest objective is to give you back control of your health and make you the expert in your own care, and virtual PT helps me do that in some unique and exciting ways.

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Who is the Best Fit for Remote Physical Therapy?

Not every practitioner can help every patient, and not every patient with the same diagnosis responds well to the same treatment. Here are some traits that people who succeed with telehealth have in common. Maybe some of these sound like you!

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• You have a movement- or position-related problem in your body (such as pain, numbness, or weakness)
• You're comfortable with technology
• You enjoy using apps for fun and communication
• You care about being physically active 
• Maybe you enjoy home workouts but aren’t sure what to do
• You have a busy schedule
• Maybe the logistics of physical appointments are a challenge
• You value regular, easy access to your provider(s)
• You want someone to help you make a plan and help you stick to it

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If any or all of the above resonate with you, there's a great chance that virtual PT could be a good fit for you.

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Who Is Not a Good Fit for Virtual PT?

Virtual care does have its limitations. If you meet one or more of the following criteria, you might find it more challenging to get the same quality of care from a virtual provider:

• You have a very complex injury or condition
• Your symptoms are extremely severe or irritable
• You don't have a stable internet connection or a device with a camera
• You don't have a private space where you can move around

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Not all of these disqualify you from being able to participate in virtual PT, but they can make the process more challenging.

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How Does Telehealth PT Even Work?

The Evaluation Process

Most PT evaluations involve a lot of talking - about your symptoms, what makes them better or worse, what activities they're limiting, what you're doing (and would like to do) to exercise, and what your goals are. This part works just as well remotely as it does in person.

Your description of your symptoms and your input about your goals help us start to form a plan that fits your situation right out of the gate. The rest of the exam is generally based on ruling in/ruling out different factors, and educating you about the issues you're having and what you can do about them. 

I typically ask my clients to move around a bit in our session to get a feel for how they move and how their symptoms affect them. Interestingly, visual estimation of your range of motion (ROM) is about as accurate as measuring with a handheld device, so remote PT doesn’t lose out here at all (Tanaka 2020).

After some movement analysis, I’ll lead clients through some exercises to see how they feel. Based on their feedback, we can modify things right then and there to make sure we’re dialed in to their issue(s). These exercises will evolve into the client’s home exercises program.

Lastly, I’ll discuss with my clients what to expect from the rehab process, as well as what they should or shouldn’t be doing in terms of workouts and other activities so that we stack the deck in favor of healing.

As you can see, all of the above works pretty much the same as it would in person, we just do it through a camera lens. Where remote PT really shines, though, is in what comes next.

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After the Evaluation

Remote PT gives me the opportunity to ride along through my clients’ daily activities and fitness routine, since they can message me at any time to give me feedback and updates on how they’re doing.

Some ways I use this feedback:

• Something felt great when they tried it in session, but not when they do it on their own? I can tell them what needs to change.

• Are the exercises feeling too easy or too hard? I can easily send a new or modified program that is a better fit.

• Are they having trouble sticking to the plan? I am here to motivate and encourage my clients whenever they need me.

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All of this and more is possible through the relationship that virtual PT helps us build. In fact, I believe that this feedback is one of the strongest tools we have for being able to help people accomplish their movement goals, and doing remote PT means we use this feedback from the start.

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What If I Need Hands-on Care?

Here’s the elephant in the room: Don't PT's do a lot of hand-on treatment? Some of them do, some of them don't. And plenty of people find the physical presence and therapeutic touch of a provider to be helpful. That’s totally fine! 

There’s nothing wrong with feeling like this might be something you need. We know, based on research and experience, that the real magic happens when we give you a chance to explore how your body moves (Gomes-Neto 2016). While manual therapy can help in the short term, it is absolutely not required for you to feel better.

If you still find value in hands-on interventions like massage therapy, we can work with that! Specifically, I can show you how to take advantage of simple tools like a tennis ball or a foam roller to take charge of your own tissue health. This helps you better connect with your body, and lets us pump up the volume on how much tissue work you can do in, say, a week, because you don’t even have to leave home. 

Alternatively, if hands-on work is an absolute must-have for you, I can collaborate with any providers you have chosen to be part of your healthcare team. So if you’ve got a bodyworker that you adore, let’s get everybody on the same page so we can work together to help you get better faster!

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We recognize that a virtual care model may not click for everyone, and it may not be the best choice for all injuries or movement problems. However, the tools that we have available to us mean that we can still deliver the most effective parts of PT care directly to you and, even better, we can do so in the comfort of your own home.

If you like the idea of working with a provider who's in your pocket and on your side, who's dedicated to helping you build a plan that works for you specifically, and you're ready to level up your efforts to move better and feel better, Siento can help. Check us out at https://sien.to and see why we believe that virtual PT is the future of rehabilitation.

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