Sub-Acute Care Team: The Physiatrist
Physiatry is a branch of physical medicine and part of orthopedic rehabilitation. The physiatrist specializes in health problems following injury, accident or illness.
There are several specialties involved in the sub-acute care team. Meet – the physiatrist.
We hear much more about the physical therapist, but there is a great difference between the two.
A physiatrist is a medical doctor, who has completed medical school, with the addition of 4 years of residency training in the field. While the physiatrist does not perform operations, he can prescribe medications and refer a patient to physical therapy and rehabilitation.
When should one see a physiatrist?
A person who has a disability or impediment due to injury of disease should visit a physiatrist. For example, spinal cord injuries or a frozen shoulder. People who acquired disabilities work with a physiatrist in order to improve their quality of life.
What are the injuries that a physiatrist specializes in?
- Sports and spine related injuries
- Injuries/impediments due to illness
- lower back pain
- fibromyalgia
- neuropathic conditions
Would you meet the physiatrist in a rehabilitation center?
Yes. A patient in a rehabilitation setting may have more than one medical issue, and the physiatrist will be in charge of comprehensively managing the issues on the rehabilitative journey. After injury or illness, a person wants to get their life back together again. As far as is possible, the physiatrist will help to achieve that, without resorting to surgery.
Will the physiatrist send a patient for further testing?
Sometimes, after listening to a patient’s description, in order to better understand the problems, the patient might be sent to perform further tests, such as,
- X-rays
- Ultrasound
- MRI
- Electodiagnostic testing
How can the physiatrist help a patient to achieve functional ability and quality of life?
The main goals of the physiatrist include:
(1) diagnosis of the problem,
(2) restoring function as best as possible,
(3) pain reduction
(4) treating the whole person, not just the problematic symptoms.
The overall goal is to help a person stay as active as possible, no matter their age.
Every person on the sub-acute care team works towards curing health problems following injury, accident or illness. The physiatrist plays an important part in the team. An alternative title for a physiatrist is, “non-operative pain management doctor”, but most people use the more shorter title of “Doctor”.
There are no limits to what the physiatrist wants to try to do to help patients. The goal – as much mobility as possible for the patient, and quality of life.
Photo by Matteo Catanese on Unsplash