October is National Physical Therapy Month! October is a time where we celebrate the physical therapy profession and bring awareness about the benefits of physical therapy. Though the month of celebrating is coming to an end, it is important for people to know about the importance of physical therapy and how we play an important role in people’s everyday lives.
HISTORY OF PHYSICAL THERAPY
The physical therapy profession came to the forefront during World War I, when Marguerite Sanderson and Mary McMillan trained people to care for individuals that were wounded during the war; those trained individuals became known as “reconstruction aides”. At that time, there were more than 700 reconstruction aides, the majority women, who cared for nearly half of the 125,000 Americans that were disabled during World War I. Following the events of World War I, another turning point in history occurred during the 1920’s and the 1930’s; the poliomyelitis epidemic. Physical therapists played an important role by incorporating treatment that consisted of exercises, massages, hydrotherapeutic modalities, heat/light modalities, and the use of assistive/adaptive equipment. Fast forward to present day, physical therapists continue to play a vital role in improving the way people move in order to transform society by optimizing movement to improve the human experience.[1]
DID YOU KNOW?
- Physical therapists are movement experts that improve your health and quality of life through prescribed exercise, hands-on care, and patient education that are individualized for each patient. Physical therapists can help you… [2,3]
- Prevent an improve chronic conditions
- Manage pain, avoid surgery, and minimize use of prescription drugs
- Recover from and prevent injuries
- Improve your movement and fitness
- According to the American Physical Therapy Association’s (APTA) Physical Therapy Workforce Analysis done in 2019, there are over 223,751 physical therapists in the United States with the numbers growing every year [4]
- In order to become a physical therapist in the United States, a person must go through an accredited physical therapy program to obtain a Doctorate in Physical Therapy
- All of our MOTI Physiotherapy physical therapists are Doctors in Physical Therapy and are licensed to practice as a physical therapist in the state of California
- Physical therapists can work in various settings which include but are not limited to:
- Outpatient Clinics
- Hospitals
- Schools
- Nursing Homes
- Factories
- Sports and Fitness Facilities
- Physical Therapy Specialties
- Geriatrics
- Neurology
- Oncology
- Orthopedics
- Pediatrics
- Sports
- Women’s Health
- Wound Management
MOTI Physiotherapy has many clinicians who have various backgrounds of specialities and subspecialties that include orthopedics, sports, pelvic health, and women’s health.
THANK YOU
MOTI Physiotherapy would not be what it is today without the support of all our staff members. A big shoutout goes to our owners, Dr. Nick Cutri and Katie Schaar Cutri, our administrative team, clinic directors, assistant clinic directors, patient coordinators, physical therapists/occupational therapist, and physical therapy aides. Thank you for all that you do.
#ChoosePT #PTMonth
References
- Moffat M. The history of Physical Therapy Practice in the United States. Journal of Physical Therapy Education. 2003;17(3):15-25. doi:10.1097/00001416-200310000-00003.
- American Physical Therapy Association. Becoming a PT. American Physical therapy Association. https://www.apta.org/your-career/careers-in-physical-therapy/becoming-a-pt. October 2021.
- Choose Physical Therapy. American Physical Therapy Association. https://www.choosept.com/. October 2021.
- American Physical Therapy Association. APTA Physical Therapy Workforce Analysis. https://www.apta.org/your-career/careers-in-physical-therapy/workforce-data/apta-physical-therapy-workforce-analysis. December 2020. October 2021.