Espinoza 1

Nicolas Espinoza

Peter Foote

Senior Capstone

March 19, 2019

Physical Therapy

When someone is living their life to the fullest, there is always the possibility of getting seriously

injured or hurt to where their body can’t heal on its own. A doctor may tell their patient that they

either need surgery or physical rehabilitation (known as physical therapy). Surgery may seem

like a more direct solution, but physical therapy is virtually always recommended afterward if

the surgery causes weakness in the area that it is done. They aren’t limited to only injuries or

surgery. If there is a loss of function in a person’s musculoskeletal system, physical therapists

can be of assistance. ​Physical therapists are valuable to those in need of rehabilitation and

the public because of how efficient they are in restoring function, because of what people

learn during the experience, and because of how much they are needed.

Generally, when people learn that they are in need of physical rehabilitation, they understand

that if they want to get better, they need to follow their therapists' instructions and routines. In

moments, patients may begin getting lethargic and just tell themselves that they can skip an

exercise or stretch because they think they’ll manage without it. What they don’t know is that

they won’t recuperate at the rate that their physical therapist set them to. As mentioned in Wendy

Solomon’s article, consistency helps to achieve better results. In an interview with physical

therapist Julianne Smith, she said that she had a patient that couldn’t walk without feeling

excruciating pain. She said that after doing 4 sessions a week for a few months she was able to
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help restore normal function to the person. The patient didn’t suffer from the horrible pain that

they had been experiencing before rehabilitation. This proves that physical therapy can have a

powerful effect on people who are living day to day with preventable pain. Physical therapy is

also a very effective post operation since it can help return the original functions to the part of

the body operated on. For example, after total knee replacement patients are unable to walk and

can hardly bend their knee. Patients start by using the muscle groups around the legs to get used

to using them again. From there, leg strength training and range of motion are added. With

consistency, the knee should heal at the pace set by the physical therapist (Mayo Clinic). Not

only can physical therapy work on the musculoskeletal parts of the body, but it can also help

with other areas, such as the nervous system. A condition such as multi sclerosis, which

deteriorates the outer covering of the nerves in the body. If it is caught early enough, surgery and

physical therapy can reduce pain, and keep a range of motion and movement as best as it can be

(Baudo, Nico, and Frederick Belluci). As amazingly efficient the work of physical therapy is,

there is more good that comes out of it.

Whenever people are involved in an event or activity on multiple occasions, they tend to learn

a few things. In this case, people learn from their different weekly sessions with their physical

therapist. When Physical Therapist Will Ingerly was interviewed, he said that he wanted his

patients to learn from their many sessions. He said that he wants to expand their knowledge of

their own bodies. To understand what they are capable based on how well they can progress in

their routines. Smith had also given her opinion saying that she wants people to learn about their

bodies process and how to manage their pain. They both want their patients to learn from the

pain that their body is experiencing. Learning the causes of it and what can be done to help treat
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the pain. The different sessions teach things such as how the body moves and functions with

itself. For example, a cause of back pain can actually be the result of tight hamstrings. It doesn’t

seem to make sense at first, but after going to multiple sessions, people begin learning about how

the body works together to work properly.

As current generations of people get older, technology will continue to improve and as a

result, people will live longer lives. Because of this, the older age groups will grow in numbers.

According to the United States Census Bureau, as the generations continue to retire into the

future, the relative age of our population will increase. It is projected by 2050 that there will be

83.7 million people over the age of 65. Even in today’s world, there is much use for physical

therapy. When a phone survey was done, it was discovered that about 33% have gone through

physical therapy in the past year and 31% have in years prior to the interview (Finlayson,

Marcia, Matthew Plow, Chi Cho). There will be a need for a physical therapist because when

people get older, their body needs assistance with functioning. Their muscles begin to weaken

which can make living their lives a much harder task. They are likely to develop muscular or

skeletal conditions or diseases that can limit how they live on a day to day basis. Because of this,

they will require more assistance from others in order to complete simple tasks that shouldn’t

take much effort such as walking up and down stairs or taking a bath. Physical therapy can help

make an older person less reliant on others.

To conclude, physical therapy is an increasingly growing career choice that has many benefits

for those in need of physical rehabilitation. Firstly, the career has been proven to effectively

restore function to those who struggle to live life with periodic or chronic pain. Secondly, it is

also a learning experience to those going through the sessions since it teaches them about how
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there body functions and how the different muscles and bones work together. Finally, it is shown

to be required in the present and the future because of the growing population. As much as

people are being cautious with their physical health, there is always the risk of getting hurt. That

is why physical therapy will continue to advance to make assisting people a better and more

efficient experience.
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Works Cited

Baudo, Nico, and Frederick Belluci. ​Advances in Physical Therapy Research​. Nova

Science Publishers, Inc, 2014. ​EBSCOhost,​ search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=e000 xna&AN=665654&site=ehost-live.

Clinic, Mayo. “Physical Therapy.” ​YouTube​, YouTube, 7 Aug. 2014,

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hy1qjQomD8Y.

Finlayson, Marcia, Matthew Plow, and Chi Cho. "Use of Physical Therapy Services among

Middle-Aged and Older Adults with Multiple Sclerosis."​ Physical Therapy,​ vol. 90, no.

11, 2010, pp. 1607-18​. ProQuest,​ http://grcc.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search-

proquest-com.grcc.idm.oclc.org/docview/762729552?accountid=11183.

Ingerly, Will. ​“Re: Physical Therapist.”​ Recovered by Nicolas Espinoza, 21 Mar. 2019.

Ortman, Jennifer. “An Aging Nation: The Older Population in the United States.” ​Census.gov​, 8

Mar. 2019, www.census.gov/prod/2014pubs/p25-1140.pdf.

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Smith, Julianne. Phone interview. 25 Mar. 2019

Solomon, Wendy. "St. Luke's Expands Physical Therapy Offices in Region." ​Lehigh Valley

Business, 2017. ProQuest​, http://grcc.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search-

proquest-com.grcc.idm.oclc.org/docview/1924457149?accountid=11183.