Process

A consistent process provides a reliable environment for learning and growth. It allows for the development of data collection and then the reflection on that data to make better decisions going forward. As a physical therapist I operate with a process-oriented approach to address patient’s issues week in and week out. My patients will tell you that they also have a process, one that requires the application of effort in order to move differently and get where they want to be.

Traditionally physical therapists have some sort of routine when evaluating patients. The collection of data points like range of motion, strength testing and movement screening to name a few. Every so often, in ideal cases, those measurements will be revisited to determine progress. In work with my patients, those data points are reassessed at each subsequent session. The degree of change is noted and that is what guides my decisions going forward. Without these measurements, interventions would be applied in a semi-blinded fashion and limit their effectiveness. Working with clients consistently, week after week, I gain an understanding of how they move and what tendencies they may have.  The repetition of process helps to gain a deeper understanding.

Patients also have their own process to develop when they work with me. There of course is the new regimen of exercises to implement and the practice of those movements on a regular basis. This promotes the physical, movement related changes they are seeking to develop. There is also a new vocabulary and knowledge base that tends to arise within and around treatment sessions. We learn how to speak a language that facilitates the physical changes needed to move in new ways. Sometimes this is a reconceptualizing of how to dose exercise, or maybe it is a new way to understand the mechanics of how we move. In any case, there is a persistent process of refining and refocusing energy to make a difference.

A focus on growth and learning as well as a curious mind provide a landscape for real change. This applies not only to me as a therapist, but also patients that want to make steady changes in the way they do things. Re-evaluation and interpreting new data from week to week provide the information needed, while the desire to learn from these changes aid in gaining new perspective.

Austin Ulrich, Physical Therapist