What’s a good way of finding a competent Physical Therapist?
which washington are you in; d.c. or state? either way look for a manual therapist. typically, manual therapist are very analytical and will look to find the true cause of your problem and not just treating the symtpoms. you should be able to call any clinic and ask them what training they have. i am a PT and will answer some questions. i will not provide any treatment ideas or diagnose because it is too difficult to do so without a full evaluation that includes hands-on assessment.
narked,
If the answer is Washington (state of) I’d have a couple of recommendations for you for manual therapists.
old dogg
I live in the Bellevue area of Washington State.
What is the difference between a manual therapist and a physical therapist?
manual therapy is a type of specialized physical therapy.
how can finding a manual therapist be accomplished within a HMO?
there should be a list of clinics that accept your HMO that you can get from the insurance company. i would then call the clinic and ask them questions or even set up a time to check the clinic out. don’d be afraid to ask them about their PT training, treatment philosophy, etc.
there are several schools of thought for manual therapy. i am partial to the maitland/australian approach. it involves a lot of clinical reasoning. the goal is to reproduce your pain during the evaluation. then we can normally use the same technique that reproduced your pain to treat it. some possible questions to ask include: any certifications? where you went to school? what diagnoses you normally treat? years of experience? etc. hope that helps.