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Out-Patient Physiotherapy: What Does It Mean To You?
Wed, February 22, 2012
Across Nova Scotia, citizens can access physiotherapy services through publicly funded out-patient clinics located in hospitals. These services provide a hugely valuable contribution to the effectiveness - and cost-effectiveness - of health care in Nova Scotia, and help to ensure that all Nova Scotians can access physiotherapy care regardless of their age, income, or geographic location.
Many physiotherapy services are simply not feasible or available in private settings:
• Treatment for conditions such as cerebral palsy, stroke rehabilitation, complex post-operative recoveries, and many chronic diseases are often not available through private clinics
• Complex paediatric out-patient rehabilitation is available almost exclusively through the public system
• Many rural regions of Nova Scotia do not have ready access to private physiotherapy
• Injured workers without WCB coverage commonly receive rehab through the public system, enabling them to return to work.
• Many of our most vulnerable citizens do not have any private coverage at all. Even for those with private health insurance, and with conditions treatable within a private practice care setting, coverage is commonly only $500.00 per year. At a typical private physiotherapy clinic, this would allow for less than 10 treatments. Many conditions can be successfully treated within this number of visits, but chronic or complex conditions often cannot. Once private benefits run out, individuals often rely on public out-patient clinics.
The benefits of receiving timely access to physiotherapy care are many:
• Access to physiotherapy improves health, reduces pain, and promotes functional independence in those suffering from both acute and chronic conditions.
• Patients can often be discharged from hospital faster when they have access to out-patient rehabilitation.
• When physiotherapists are involved in screening orthopaedic patients (e.g., hip and knee conditions), consultation and surgical wait-times are reduced, and patients receive appropriate care faster.
Publicly funded out-patient physiotherapy ensures that all members of our community have access to the care they need.
How has publicly funded out-patient physiotherapy helped you? We want to hear your stories! Send them to (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). We'll post them (without names) to our website as examples of the great physiotherapy care received by Nova Scotians.
Tags: access - hospitals - out-patient - public healthcare funding - rehabilitation
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