What is physiotherapy?

Physiotherapy is commonly referred to as a treatment. The purpose of physiotherapy is to address structure using rehabilitative exercise to promote healing and prevent re-injury. Therefore, physiotherapist strategically employs a number of treatment types to ultimately assist people in regaining their functional abilities. 

In some cases, this means restoring and regaining a specific movement or skill, in other cases it may mean to control pain, protect from further injury, understand new limitations or maximize a person’s overall quality of life. The treatment considers the whole person, including lifestyle factors such as work, hobbies, exercise etc.

No matter the goal, the medical practice of Physiotherapy (or Physical Therapy) strives to return to a person a physical well-being that has been lost. The goal is to foster development and recovery, ensuring people can stay as active and independent as possible.

 

What does a physiotherapist do?

Physiotherapists have studied the science of movement and developed hands-on clinical skills so that they can diagnose and help restore, maintain, and improve a person’s overall function and well-being. Physiotherapists focus on both prevention and rehabilitation strategies for pain caused by injury, disease, or disability. They use a range of physical techniques during treatment to ease pain and increase mobility. They also believe in the importance of the patient being involved in their own treatment. This includes education, re-training, exercises and participation, to complement the physical treatments conducted during visits.