The guide to efficient physical therapy examination /

Do you want more time for treatment and less time on documentation? Follow Dr. Jim Heafner's PT, DPT, OCS Guide to Efficient PT Examination. This book will teach you a safe and systematic process to evaluate the lumbar spine, cervical spine, knee region, and shoulder region. Each sections builds on his clinical experience as an Orthopedic Clinical Specialist and didactic coursework through the OPTIM Manual Therapy Fellowship. In physical therapy school, therapists are taught a broad spectrum of knowledge. Orthopedic examination, treatment, and prognosis is covered in-depth. For example, we learn more than 50 special tests to diagnose shoulder impingement, rotator cuff dysfunction, biceps pathology, and labral tears. Despite all this knowledge, therapists lack the ability to prioritize these tests. Many therapists gather information without considering ‘why’ we perform each measure. We soon realize that the special tests are not very special! Upon finishing their clinical examination, they are drowning in information that only minimally changes their patient’s prognosis or intervention selection. The therapist has found several secondary and tertiary impairments without identifying the primary cause of the problem. This evaluation style is problematic because the examiner is no longer guiding the exam by evidence-based measures. Physical Therapists need an examination process that is thorough, reproducible, and efficient.