It takes a whole-body approach to create a whole-person approach. At Angel Home Healthcare Services, our skilled professionals use occupational and physical therapy treatments together to enhance the lives of our patients. Learn why two approaches are better than one when it comes to regaining strength and mobility!
What Is Physical Therapy? Who Needs It?
Physical therapy (PT) is a method of care aimed at easing pain, improving physical function, and increasing mobility for a better quality of life. It can be essential for returning to normal activity following illness or injury. Your physical therapist begins by assessing your needs to develop an individualized PT plan. Common PT goals treatments include:
- Therapist-guided stretches and exercises
- Traction therapy for alleviating spinal pressure, back pain, or pinched nerves
- Manual massage and manipulation
- Cold and heat therapy
- Ultrasound-guided therapies for easing muscle pain and spasms
- Massage, heat therapy, cold therapy, warm-water therapy, or ultrasound to ease muscle pain or spasms
- Physical rehab work
PT can be used for rehabilitation following surgery, brain damage, stroke, or an injury. It’s also commonly used to help improve movements in patients suffering from neurological conditions, movement disorders, and arthritis.
As treatment progresses, a physical therapist continually assesses a patient to adjust treatments for optimal strength, balance, and coordination.
What Is Occupational Therapy? Who Needs It?
Occupational therapy (OT) is a recuperative form of therapy that encourages rehabilitation from physical or mental illness. The goal of occupational therapy is to help individuals gain greater ability to perform everyday tasks.
While occupational therapy can be used for a variety of conditions and situations, it is commonly utilized by people living with the effects of stroke, autism, and other conditions that interfere with the ability to complete daily tasks.
Occupational therapy can look very different from patient to patient. One patient may need treatment that emphasizes physical movements for gaining the strength, mobility, and confidence to complete tasks. Another may benefit from life changes and adaptations.
For example, an occupational therapist may assist a patient with receiving a wheelchair ramp, electrical appliances, and other essential lifestyle tools.
Can You Receive These Therapies While Homebound?
Absolutely! Patients can receive world-class care from the comfort and safety of home.
Angel Home Healthcare Services offers homebound therapies in Dallas for patients unable to travel to treatment facilities for essential physical and occupational therapy services.
How Is Each Therapy Different From the Other?
Physical therapy focuses on enhancing a patient’s gross motor skills by treating movements of large muscles. The general goal is to help improve whole-body movements that enable a patient to maintain independence by being able to walk, stand up, climb and jump.
PT also addresses balance, strength, and coordination. By contrast, occupational therapy focuses on helping patients to either maintain or reestablish the ability to perform essential daily tasks.
How Is Each Therapy Complementary to the Other?
Physical therapy and occupational therapy have similar treatment goals. When combined, the two therapeutic approaches can help patients to recover motor skills, strength, and function.
They both also share the quality of promoting improved quality of life with as much independence as possible. For patients in a recovery phase following any type of injury or diagnosis, a combination of PT and OT will often be needed for a full recovery incorporating motor function, bodily awareness, and motivation.
The same patient benefiting from physical therapy sessions that help them relearn how to walk can also benefit from OT sessions that help them relearn how to eat with a fork.
Angel Home Healthcare Services Helps Homebound Patients Receive the Therapies They Need
Reach out to Angel Home Healthcare Services if you’re looking for a trusted home health aide in Dallas. Offering compassionate, dependable, and affordable physical therapy and occupational therapy services to patients in their homes, Angel Home Healthcare Services is a state-licensed, Medicare-certified home health agency serving countless patients and families throughout Dallas, North Dallas, and Forth Worth.
