Author: Dr. Vince Gutierrez, PT, cert. MDT

After having dedicated 8 years to growing my knowledge regarding the profession of physical therapy, it seems only fitting that I join the social media world in order to spread a little of the knowledge that I have gained over the years. This by no means is meant to act in place of a one-one medical consultation, but only to supplement your baseline knowledge in which to choose a practitioner for your problem. Having completed a Master of Physical Therapy degree, the MDT (Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy) certification and currently finishing a post-graduate doctorate degree, I have spent the previous 12 years in some sort of post-baccalalaureate study. Hopefully the reader finds the information insightful and uses the information in order to make more informed healthcare decisions. MISSION STATEMENT: My personal mission statement is as follows: As a professional, I will provide a thorough assessment of your clinical presentation and symptoms in order to determine both the provocative and relieving positions and movements. The assessment process and ensuing treatment will be based on current and relevant evidence. Furthermore, I will educate the patients regarding their symptoms and their likelihood of improving with either skilled therapy, an independent exercise program, spontaneous recovery or if the patient should be referred to a separate specialist to possibly provide a more rapid resolution of symptoms. Respecting the patient’s limited resources is important and I will provide an accurate overview of the prognosis within 7 visits, again based on current research. My goal is to empower the patient in order to take charge of both the symptomatic resolution and return to full function with as little dependence on the therapist as possible. Personally, I strive to be an example for family and friends. My goal is to demonstrate that success is not a byproduct of situations, but a series of choices and actions. I will mentor those, in any way possible, that are having difficulty with the choices and actions for success. I will continue to honor my family’s “blue-collar” roots by working to excel at my chosen career and life situations. I choose to be a leader of example, and not words, all the while reducing negativity in my life. I began working towards the professional aspect of the mission statement while still in physical therapy school. By choosing an internship that emphasized patient care and empowering the patient, instead of the internship that was either closest to home or where I knew that I would have the easiest road to graduation, I took the first step towards learning how to utilize the evidence to teach patients how to reduce their symptoms. I continued this process by completing Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy courses A-D and passing the credentialing exam. I will continue to pursue my clinical education through CEU’s on MDT and my goal is to obtain the status of Diplomat of MDT. Returning back to school for the t-DPT was a major decision for me, as resources (i.e. time and money) are limited. My choice was between saving money for the Dip MDT course (about 15,000 dollars) and continuing on with the Fellowship of American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Physical Therapists (FAAOMPT) (about 5,000 dollars), as these courses are paired through the MDT curriculum or returning to school to work towards a Doctorate of Physical Therapy degree. I initially planned on saving for the Dip MDT and FAAOMPT, but life changes forced me to re-evaluate my situation. The decision then changed to return for the tDPT, as my employer paid for a portion of the DPT program. My goal for applying to and finishing the Dip MDT and FAAOMPT is 10 years. This is how long I anticipate that it will take to finish paying student loans and save for both programs, based on the current rate of payment. I don’t know if I will ever accomplish what I set forth in the mission statement, but I do know that it will be a forever struggle to maintain this standard that I set for myself.

The underdog story

The Underdog Story

How many of you stood in line to collect government cheese? That used to be a joke I would hear from those that were part of the “have” culture, but being raised in the “have not” culture made the line for government cheese a reality. The cheese was a brick of cheddar cheese.  Picture the industrial size that you would buy from Sam’s club or Costco, but it wasn’t near as good.  We had to use the old wire cutter in order to slice it.  We would race home and start cutting the cheese (not like that) with the wire cutter and the kids in the neighborhood would be full.  I never told my dad this story because he would’ve been upset with us taking handouts.

That’s were I grew up.  Our playground was a parking lot.  Our games of choice were whiffle ball and if you hit the taped up ball over the roof of the corner tavern, it was a home run.  We played tag in a blocks radius, which takes me to my next story.

I was always the heavy one.  I can remember going to Sears as a kid and heading straight to the Husky section.  That’s right…we had a section named just for us big kids.  Men’s, women’s, kid’s…husky.  Yeah, that wouldn’t fly today.

Being the “big kid”, I was always “it” when playing tag.  I wasn’t as fast as my more athletic brothers and would only be able to tag them if they let me.

One day while playing tag, I was chasing my brother and out of nowhere a car hit me and ran me over.  It could have been the end of me.  I should have been up in the clouds playing a harp.  Luckily, I was the big kid and my doctor reminded me of this when I was finally taken to the doctor after the accident.

He said (in a Chinese voice): “If you weren’t so fat, you could have been seriously hurt”

Looking back now, it’s a funny story, but it wasn’t then.

When my dad got home he only had one phrase for me; “did you learn anything”.  Mind you I’m 5 at the time! My dad is a Vietnam Veteran.  Tough to the core, but a heart of gold.  Whatever didn’t kill us would make us stronger and there had to be a learning lesson in there somewhere.

Needless to say, I had to overcome a lot of challenges growing up in an area where the anticipated outcomes were jail or cemetery.

This is what makes the story so great.  I overcame! I believe that anyone can overcome with the right mind set.

To other PT’s the title of doctor is one that can be spoken of only quietly in dark corners.  I am proud of it.  I am more so proud to have been named among the greats this year.  Updoc media named me among the top 40 influential physical therapists of 2017.

I’ve come a long way from the husky kid collecting government cheese.

Thanks to the guys at Updoc and thanks for reading.

https://updocmedia.com/2017-top-40-influencers/

HOW PT CAN HELP WITH FMS

HOW CAN PT HELP WITH FIBROMYALGIA?

I was recently asked in an open forum how PT can help fibromyalgia.  I hope the summary of this article sheds light on how important of a role PT’s play in this ailment.

“…Fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) as a syndrome characterized by chronic widespread pain and tenderness in at least 11 of 18 predefined tender points”

First, when something is characterized as a “syndrome” it means that there is a cluster of symptoms that are common amongst people, but there is no definite test in order to prove that it is the cause of symptoms.

This makes FMS difficult to treat and understand because we don’t have a specific test in which to try to “fix” the underlying cause.

This article will go into what we know about FMS and what is hypothesized about FMS to further the patient’s knowledge of how PT can help.

“…prevalence rates between 0.5% to 6%”

This means that in the general population we will see this diagnosis between 5 in 1,000 and 6 in 100.  Depending on the setting that a PT works in, the prevalence rate may be much higher.  I can say personally that this is either the primary diagnosis or a secondary diagnosis in about 25% of my current caseload.

“…high comorbidity with other disorders, particularly chronic fatigue syndrome and mental disorders, including depression and anxiety disorder”

FMS is not frequently a diagnosis on its own. The patient with FMS may also have other issues such as chronic fatigue, which is not the same as FMS.  The person may also have a psychological issue, which may play a role in FMS.

“FMS is not only a chronic pain syndrome but also consists of a whole range of symptoms referring to effort intolerance and stress intolerance, as well as hypersensitivity for pain and other sensory stimuli”

Fibromyalgia goes well beyond pain only.  The patient with FMS is not frequently able to tolerate a great deal of activity without worsening of symptoms.  This is a major role for the PT to educate the patient regarding when it is safe to push harder and when the patient may need to back off activity in order to allow the system (read that as body as a whole) to calm down. A good book for this topic is “A World of Hurt” by Annie O’Connor and Melissa Kolski.

Hypersensitivity is a key finding in FMS and this will be spoken about later in the article.

“The precise etiology and pathogenesis of FMS remain undefined, and there is no definite cure”

When I read this, it sounds doom and gloom, but if you read it more like a science person instead of as a layperson it makes sense.  If we don’t know the cause of a specific action, then we can’t possibly know how to stop the action or prevent it in the first place.

“It is not our intention to advocate that physical therapists are able to manage a complex disorder such as fibromyalgia on their own”

Because there are multiple components to the syndrome (remember the psychological issues spoken of earlier), this is not a problem that can be handled by one professional without help from others.  As PT’s, we can play a role in managing this process, but that’s it…we play a role.

“Fibromyalgia syndrome is characterized by sensitization of the central nervous system, which explains the majority of, if not all, symptoms…Once central sensitization is established, little nociceptive input is required to maintain it…an increased responsiveness to a variety of peripheral stimuli, including mechanical pressure, chemical substances, light, sound, cold, heat, and electrical stimuli…results in a large decreased load tolerance of the senses and the neuromuscular system.”

When your nerves are more sensitive, then the sensations that you feel such as pain, heat, pressure, etc may be felt quicker and more intense than those without this syndrome.  This is the concept of little nociceptive input (pain input) is required to maintain sensitivity.  For instance, when someone has a lower threshold for pain (not an ego thing) then smaller deviations will cause pain.  I have treated patients that claimed to have increased pain from being touched by a feather! It is real and the patient’s experience of pain cannot be denied.

“…pain facilitation and pain inhibition is influenced by cognitions, emotions, and behaviors such as catastrophizing, hypervigilance, avoidance behavior and somatization”

This is a great article because the authors did a great job of attempting to summarize FMS in a concise manner. Pain is an experience.  It doesn’t mean that a tissue is injured, as pain can be felt in the absence of injury.  A person can also have a severe injury and not have pain.  A person’s emotional state can override the pain response. For instance, I experienced a major injury to my face in which my nose was pulled from my face during a weightlifting movement.  I had no pain until I actually saw the injury in a mirror.  The injury was unchanged from the minutes of standing at the bar until I went into the locker room and saw the injury.  What changed was my mental state.  I started worrying about severe damage, financial concerns, loss of work etc.  All of these are the same worries that everyone else has when they experience a pain that is not explained (this is the definition of catastrophizing).

Avoidance behavior means that a person will stop performing activities because of fear of making symptoms worse. Finally, somatization indicates that a person experiences symptoms in the absence of a test that can show anything is actually causing the pain.

Avoiding activity and catastrophizing actually causes a change in the nervous system in that it may sensitize the spinal cord.

“…abnormal functioning of the stress system seems to occur mostly in the aftermath of a long period of overburdening by physical and emotional stressors and to be precipitated by an additional trigger in the form of an acute physical or emotional event.”

Now you, as the reader, can see why PT’s can’t solve this puzzle alone.  There are so many variables that play a role in this syndrome that more than one professional needs to be involved in the care.

“…many patients with FMS have maladaptive illness beliefs, cognition, and behaviors that preclude successful rehabilitation.”

The primary intervention that takes place in therapy, almost regardless of the diagnosis, is education.  When a patient understands their own beliefs and how they may play a role in hindering progress, we have actually reached a milestone.  This is very much based in education.  If we can educate the patient enough regarding pain and more importantly how to respond to pain and its meaning, then we can progress towards other interventions.  If we can’t teach the patient or come to a mutual understanding regarding pain and how it is thought to work, then progress will be difficult.  As stated in the following portion of the article; “Poor understanding of pain may lead to the acquisition of maladaptive attitudes and behavior in relation to pain”. This means that the number one treatment that PT’s can offer to patients with FMS, and any other pain disorder for that matter, is education.

“…more adequate pain beliefs lead to increased confidence, which, in turn, leads to increased activity levels. An education course directed at improving self-efficacy for the management of the pain disorder ameliorated symptom severity and improved physical function”

We have to break the cycle of pain.  This may be achieved by breaking any part of the cycle.  The thought is that if we can increase a person’s activity level, or tolerance, that we could improve or decrease how sensitive the nerves are to outside stimuli.  This would allow a person to slowly tolerate more and more activity with less pain over time.  This is considered graded exposure.

“Evidence in support of activity management alone for those with FMS is currently unavailable. However, it is generally included in cognitive behavioral therapy.”

The thought is that if we can reduce the stress (think physical, emotional and otherwise) that a person is experiencing, that we would be able to reduce flare-ups.  This is a good thought, but hasn’t been proven.  What we know is that we need to increase activity levels because there are many good benefits from an active lifestyle such as decreased risk of mortality, increased lifespan, and improved quality of life.

“Limited evidence supports that use of spinal manipulation and moderate evidence supports the use of massage therapy in patients with FMS”

There are many in the field of PT, including the American Physical Therapy Association, has stated that the passive use of physical therapy should be questioned if it is the primary treatment.  Passive therapy is treatment done TO the patient instead of done BY the patient.  This “passive therapy” also fosters the dependence of the patient on the therapist.

When a patient is dependent on a therapist for improvement, the winner is always the therapist and his/her bank account.  In the end, we want to empower the patient to take control of his/her pain status and start to experiment with activity in order to establish a baseline activity that can be performed without flare-ups.

“Strong evidence supports aerobic exercise, and moderate evidence supports muscle strength training for the management of FMS”

This is an easy statement to make, but many patients tell me that “they couldn’t tolerate any exercise”. This is where the therapist-patient team (therapeutic alliance) really comes into play.  It is the therapist’s job to listen to the patient in order to provide treatment strategies that will improve the patient’s fitness levels, WITHOUT flaring-up symptoms.

“Physical exercise is troublesome for many patients with FMS due to activity-induced pain, especially for patients with severe disabilities”

This statement sums up the challenge of physical therapy and the challenge for the physical therapist.  A patient with FMS cannot be issued a check-list of exercises to perform in the clinic.  There has to be a relationship of trust between the therapist and the patient.  When a patient comes into the clinic, he/she trusts that the therapist is issuing interventions with the patient’s end-goal in mind.  If, at any time, the patient feels that the therapist is not providing GREAT care, then the patient needs to leave and find a therapist that treats them as a person and not a number! This is important and will come up again towards the end of the article.

“Nonspecific factors such as the patient’s emotional processing of the encounter with the health care professional, the quality of the therapeutic alliance, and the patient’s treatment preferences may be important in predicting therapeutic outcomes.”

THIS IS HUGE! The emotional processing of the encounter….Read that again….How the patient perceives being treated during the session plays a role in the outcomes. When we know that there is an emotional component to FMS, it is our responsibility to ensure that we accommodate this by trying to provide the best experience as possible. This starts from the initial phone call and progresses through the initial visit.  This perception starts prior to the patient coming into the clinic.  The patient needs to be heard and feel important in order to get the best results. I would say that this should hold true to all patients and not just for those with chronic pain or FMS.

Thanks for reading and I hope it was helpful.

Excerpts taken from:

Nijs J, Mannerkorpi K, Descheemaeker F, et al. Primary Care Physical Therapy in People with Fibromyalgia: Opportunities and Boundaries Within a Monodisciplinary Setting. Phys Ther. 2010;90(12):1815-1822.

Not all patients get the same treatment for pain because not all therapists have the same knowledge

“Exponential increases in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning to identify these damaged structures (believed to be causing low back pain) have led to escalating rates of spinal fusions and disc replacements.”

There is a trend towards increased surgery rates in the US for low back pain.  We see upwards of a 777% increase in spine surgery for low back pain.  The sad part is that the your chance of having surgery is more dependent on your geographic location than other variables.  It has been said that if you are trying to avoid a surgery that you should also avoid an MRI…which takes us to the next fact.

“…evidence that abnormal MRI findings are prevalent in asymptomatic populations and are poor predictors of future LBP (low back pain) and disability”

In other words, if you go looking for a problem…you’re likely to find one.  The “problem” on the MRI may not actually be causing your symptoms though, as we see “problems” with people that have no symptoms.  To put it another way, if a “herniated disc” was always a cause of pain, then everyone with a herniated disc will have pain.  We know that this isn’t true.  This indicates that the structure/tissue that is a “problem” on the MRI may not be causing any problems at all during your day.

“…providing a patient with a pathoanatomical diagnosis can result in increased fear and iatrogenic disability”

Lots of big words there, so let’s work through this together.

Patho: bad

Anatomical: body parts

Therefore: pathoanatomical = bad body parts

This is typically what you hear when you have imaging (MRI, X-ray, CT scan) performed.  Herniated disc, degenerative joint, arthritis, stenosis. All of these words mean that something abnormal was seen on the image.

Iatro: means relating to medical treatment

Genic: means coming from

This means that the “iatrogenic disability” could be disability coming from medical treatment.

I know what you’re asking: “How can the medical interaction with a doctor/therapist/medical professional be causing the disability?”

This is a great question that the authors of the article will go into in a short while. More to come.

“It is increasingly clear that persistent and disabling LBP is not an accurate measure of local tissue pathology or damage alone…it is best seen as a protective mechanism produced by the neuro-immune-endocrine systems in response to the individual’s perceived level of danger, threat or disruption to homeostasis.”

WHAAAT?!

This means that the tissue that was previously damaged may not be the culprit for prolonged pain.  For instance, your body can have a protective mechanism produced by the brain when it feels threatened.  The brain is powerful in creating change. For instance, watch this video to see how quickly it can start to change.

“…pain and behavioral responses may fluctuate based on a person’s perception of threat, levels of attention to pain, mood, contextual social stressors, sleep, and activity levels.”

If you feel threatened, your pain levels may increase.  Removing threat through distraction has been shown to be helpful in multiple studies.  Tetris seems to be one of the most studied games.  Also, math is more painful to some than others.  In the clinic, I have used math as a distraction and watched how pain rapidly resolves and some patients are able to perform movements that they wouldn’t consider performing if they weren’t distracted.  There is some thoughts that the more often we ask you about pain…the worse it actually gets because we force the patient to emphasize the feelings of pain compared to their current function.  Finally, we know that a lack of sleep can cause a myriad of problems from difficulty concentrating to an increase in pain due to increased nerve sensitivity.  These are all factors that play a role when a patient comes to the clinic experiencing pain.

“This contemporary understanding demands a shift away from providing a simplistic structural and/or biomechanical diagnosis and treatment for LBP…enables the patient to become a partner in a therapeutic journey”

For some patients, we can correlate a “problem” on the MRI with their symptoms, but in a subgroup of patients, we are unable to do this.  For that subgroup, we need to look past the pathoanatomical model and therapeutic alliance (the teamwork between the therapist and patient) becomes very important in order to empower the patient with regards to symptom response and education.

“Growing evidence suggests that current practice is discordant with contemporary evidence, and is in fact often exacerbating the problem.”

We may not need to abandon the patho model completely, but we as practitioners need to have more than just the patho model.  In order to prevent iatrogenic pain beliefs, we need to grow our skills in order to better help you…the patient.  If you are going to therapy and are not seeing relief within 6 visits and don’t feel that your therapist has a strong understanding of your pain…seek a second opinion. Not all Medical Doctors are the same, and the same can be said for physical therapists.

Excerpts taken from

O’Sullivan P, Caneiro JP, O’Keefe M, O’Sullivan K. Viewpoint: Unraveling the complexity of low back pain. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther. 2016;46(11):932-937.

 

 

Not knowing versus not learning

“Ignorance: a limited understanding of all the relevant physical laws and conditions that apply to any given problem or circumstance”

I don’t think that this is much of a problem in the physical therapy profession for the basic concepts of the profession.  The issue of ignorance comes into play when we start discussing current evidence.  A new graduate’s primary responsibility is to pass the boards ( a national test in order to determine basic competency in order to practice as a PT).  Unfortunately, the boards are based off the books used during the physical therapy program and the books are based from research that is at least 5 years old or older.  This means that the students are being tested on material that is greater than 5 years old.  Current published research may not make its way into an educational programs curriculum due to time constraints.  In this fashion, the students may be ignorant to current research or niche research.

“Ineptitude: meaning that knowledge exists, but an individual or group fails to apply that knowledge correctly in a particular circumstance. “

This is common.  We know that therapists are not staying current with published research.  Time and access are two barriers to staying up to date on the research.  Just a quick example.  I dedicate 10 minutes per day to reading.  Even 10 minutes per day is hard to fit in with all the other hats that I must wear such as: business partner (http://www.goodliferehab.com/) , father, husband, running a separate Facebook page that interviews influencers and performing community lectures.  There is only so much time in the day and I can understand how some therapists will have a difficult time fitting learning into their day.  Barriers to obtaining current research can be the cost of a subscription to get the journal articles.  For instance, I pay over $1,000/year just to have access to research.  This is a big chunk of money when you consider all the other life activities that aren’t free.  Pair this with the fact that the “average” salary for PT is 80,000 ish and that students have well over $100,000 in debt.

, that $1,000/year over the lifetime of a career becomes expensive!

“For instance, through numerous scientific breakthroughs, there has been a repudiation of ‘folk’ treatments in our profession-such as hot packs or ultrasound for heat therapy-in favor of treatments based on scientific evidence.”

Going to PT should not resemble going to a spa! If you are going to PT and getting electrodes placed on you…getting hot packs placed on you…getting rubbed with gel while someone is moving a wand on your skin…or getting a rubdown…THAT IS NOT PHYSICAL THERAPY! On the flip side, PT should not resemble personal training! Going to your therapist and getting a list of exercises for you to perform independently while your therapist is chatting with others…IS NOT PHYSICAL THERAPY! The closes profession that I can equate therapy to is that of a teacher-student (and not always is the therapist the teacher!).  This healthcare relationship should be a personal relationship that takes place in a private setting allowing for open communication between the therapist and patient.  The patient should walk out of each session with more knowledge than they walked in with. The patient should understand why interventions are performed…or better yet why some aren’t performed.  We need to get away from the tradition of PT and move towards what the evidence tells us.

“However, despite the excellent EBP (current evidence) resources now available, ineptitude remains a major 21st century challenge in medical and rehabilitation care”

I have a dare for all of you reading this.  When you go see your next healthcare practitioner I want you to ask a simple question: “How much education do you get every 2 years?” In PT, we are required to get a minimal amount of continuing education to maintain our license.  DO YOU WANT TO BE TREATED BY SOMEONE THAT IS ONLY GETTING THE MINIMAL AMOUNT OF EDUCATION OR SOMEONE THAT IS DEVOTING TIME TO FURTHER THEIR KNOWLEDGE OUTSIDE OF THE MINIMAL STANDARDS FROM EACH STATE!

“…3 types of influence that have been shown to relate to the rate of spread of an innovation: (1) perceptions of the innovation, (2) characteristics of those who adopt the innovation or fail to do so, and (3) contextual factors”

The following will discuss how these all relate.

“First, the perceived benefit of the proposed innovation relative to its cost is the most powerful influence.”

For instance, a hot pack may not give much benefit, but it is cheap and relatively safe.  You will see this frequently in a PT clinic that sees a high volume of patients because of its relative ease of use and safety…assuming the therapist is asking you how you’re doing and checking a few things before, during and after.

Cold laser treatment is slower to take off in our profession because it is an out of pocket intervention…which means that your insurance company won’t pay for it regardless of whether it works.  This intervention is slower to be used in the clinic because it may be cost prohibitive for some patients.

“Second, rapidity of change is directly related to how compatible the innovation is to values, beliefs, and history.”

There are some “treatments” that become popular during years of summer Olympics.  In 2012, a specific brand of tape was seen on many of the “big name” volleyball players.  The thought was that it “kept things more supported”.  There is no research that conclusively states anything near this type of statement…but there is a lot of research that says the opposite.  We still see it used in clinics today…which is okay, if the rationale for using it is what is intended from our current knowledge base.  For instance, we know that it reduces pain and allows for increased ROM…sometimes.  If the patients are educated in this regard and not that it “keeps things in place” …go for it.  It seems like 2016 was the year of the octopus.  If you looked at one of the “world’s most famous swimmers”, it looked like he wrestled with an octopus underwater.  This technique has been around for centuries.  Some therapists are starting to do it because patients are asking for it.

“Third, the complexity of an innovation affects the rate of its adoption, and, as expected, simple innovations spread faster than complicated ones.”

Ultrasound, electrical stimulation, and traction are all very easy to perform…since the machine does most, if not all, of the work.  These were quickly adopted into our profession and are hard to convince some clinicians to stop using…regardless of what the evidence states.

More complicated interventions such as “critical thinking” are harder to adopt.  For instance, when assessing a patient with back pain or vestibular issues, there is a plethora of research showing that if we can classify it that we have a better outcome.  Classifying the problem requires (1) knowledge, (2) assessment, (3) application, which is a lot harder than just pushing a button on a machine.

Some of the personality types are as follows: 1. Innovators, 2. Early adopters, 3. Early majority 4. Late majority, 5. Laggards

A lot of these are self-explanatory, but it trends from those that jump onto something quickly to those that just hate change.

“Organizations that foster social exchange among its members are likely to see faster adoption of innovations as compared with institutions and organizations that foster habits of isolation and tradition.”

Essentially, workplaces that allow for communication will allow for change faster than workplaces that keep everyone separate.  This has to do with changing a culture.  A business that has a fluid culture (one that is easily adjusted), is more apt to change than one that has a strict culture.

“Publishing our work in journals is essential-but publication of research is not, by itself, sufficient if our goal is to change clinical practice. People follow the lead of other people they know and trust when they decide whether to take up an innovation and change the way they practice!”

This is huge! Any profession is a small world and PT is no different.  To push the profession forward, we must depend on more than just published research.  There are many influencers in our sphere such as Dr. Ben Fung, Dr. Jarod Hall, the team from PT on ICE, the team from Evidence in Motion, Dr. Richard Severin, and myself (I’m always trying to sneak my way into this group of titans).  By seeing others lead the way, it is much easier to follow.  Only the innovators and early adopters will feel comfortable at the front of the pack.

As a patient and therapist, you may want to assess your therapists/mentor and determine which of the 5 personality types he/she has.

 

Thanks for reading.  Please leave a comment on my FB page letting me know what you think.

EXCERPTS TAKEN FROM:

Jette AM. Editorial: Overcoming Ignorance and Ineptitude in 21st Century Rehabilitation. Phys Ther. 2017;97:497-498.

 

link to abstract

 

Did therapy help your knee pain? If no…continue to read. 

Did therapy help your knee pain? 

“Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the leading causes of pain and disability worldwide”

This is an indication of how prevalent this condition is in the world. Arthritis is seen as a byproduct of aging, but this doesn’t mean that it directly causes pain.

“…exercise intervention has been shown to be efficacious and is recommended in multiple guidelines; however, its treatment effect has been reported to be modest.”

Everyone can benefit from exercise, but the extent of the benefit for patients with knee pain may not be that “miracle” that people expect.  

“Although the statistical effectiveness of exercise for knee OA has been clearly demonstrated and may be equivalent or better than commonly prescribed medications, the effect on pain reduction and function remains modest.”

Exercise is a powerful tool or at least among the most powerful that we have now. In saying this though, it is not a magic elixir.  

“The MDT approach has been extensively used to classify and treat patients with spinal pain. Studies have shown the MDT approach to be valid, reliable, able to successfully predict outcomes and associated with decreased lumbar surgery rates, pain, and disability.”

If this doesn’t sound great, then I don’t know what does! MDT (Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy) is a specific assessment and treatment style that Is not taught in school. One must go through advanced courses and take a test to say that they are competent at using the method. Ask your therapist if they have taken any courses in the method and if they have achieved the certification through the Institute. This is the only way to determine if the therapist that you are seeing is competent to utilize the principles of the system.  

“The most prevalent and well-studies MDT subgroup is the ‘derangement’ classification. This classification has been described in all joints and has been associated with a rapid response to specific end-range exericses…”

Would you like your symptoms to rapidly improve? Who wouldn’t? Roughly 40% of patients with knee pain may have symptoms that respond rapidly to a single exercise. Turning off pain doesn’t have to be difficult. In many patients, it only takes a single exercise to reduce or turn off the pain. This has to be followed-up with a constant assessment in order to determine which exercises the joint will tolerate at a specific point in time in order to ensure that the symptoms do not return when not in the clinic. There has been a lot of research in the medical world regarding Low Back Pain, but this article is the first that I have seen using the same principles for osteoarthritic knees.  

“…significant treatment main effects were present for all primary outcomes. The MDT derangement subgroup had improved scores at 2 weeks and 3 months compared to the MDT nonresponder subgroup for all primary outcomes”

This is huge! This sentence essentially states that doing one exercise is more beneficial than doing many for a small subset of patients. Now for a little more information on a derangement. If there is one exercise that can greatly improve your pain, then there will be multiple exercises that either have no effect or make the pain worse. If your therapist is not at least looking for and ruling out this preferential exercise or direction of movement, you may be in therapy for a longer period with a longer list of home exercises. These exercises may or may not have a positive or negative effect on patient’s whose symptoms are rapidly reducible.  

“The physical therapists were credentialed in the McKenzie system, and results may not be applicable to non-McKenzie-trained therapists.”

This sentence stands on its own. Anyone claiming to use a method should at least be trained and credentialed in using the method. In the Joliet area, there are only two of us endorsed by the McKenzie Institute to utilize this method.  

 

In short, this study was performed on patients waiting to receive a total knee replacement, which means that they were shown to have severe arthritis on an X-ray. The patients receiving McKenzie-based treatment outperformed those receiving traditional evidence based guideline therapy and those that received no therapy. Seek out an MDT trained clinician if you are experiencing knee pain.  

 

I can be found at:

Functional Therapy and Rehabilitation

903 N. 129th Infantry Dr

Suite 500

Joliet, IL

815-483-2440

Do you suffer from knee pain?

Do you “suffer” from knee pain? 

“Within this new paradigm, overweight and obesity contribute to OA through biomechanical (increased joint load) and inflammatory mechanisms.”

​There is newer research that indicates body fat can release inflammation. Think about this, inflammation can cause pain and there has been the old wives tale that being overweight can be the cause of pain, but now there is research to back up the claim that excess body fat can be a factor in having increased pain.  

“Years lived with disability due to high body mass index have also increased markedly for males and females aged 15-49 years since 1990, emphasizing the potential contribution of rising obesity levels to global OA (osteoarthritis) burden among younger people”

​Being obese takes a toll on health. This is not a surprise. The heavier a person is, the more energy and work required in order to just move. Pair this with increased pain sensation and movement may actually decrease over time.  

“Research has shown that the greatest risk factor predicting the development of knee OA in young an middle-aged people is a previous traumatic knee injury”.

​If you injure your knee traumatically, the research covers ACL surgeries and meniscus surgeries, then there is a high likelihood of developing knee osteoarthritis.  

“Radiographic findings are not well correlated with symptoms and are unlikely to alter the management plan or predict future disease progression”

​THIS MAY BE THE MOST IMPORTANT MESSAGE FOR PATIENTS TO UNDERSTAND. Just because an X-ray shows “degeneration”, “osteoarthritis”, “joint narrowing”, “bone spurs”…so on and so forth…doesn’t mean that this is causing pain. What we now is that these findings are common as we age. There’s an analogy that these findings are similar to wrinkles on the skin, they are just wrinkles on the inside. Not too many people worry about skin degeneration in the form of wrinkles. The same should hold true regarding some of the results of an X-ray or MRI.  

“Overuse of MRI is costly for health systems and may lead to unwarranted surgical intervention.”

​The most important part of this is that MRI’s may lead to surgeries that aren’t needed. Let’s go back to the wrinkle analogy. Just because something doesn’t look young and supple…like it does in the textbooks, doesn’t mean that everyone should have a surgery to remove wrinkles. The same holds true for wrinkles on the inside.  

“…comprehensive assessment of young patients should include 3 key components: 1. A patient-centered history; 2. Physical examination, including performance-based tests; and 3. Administration of appropriate patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs).”

​I challenge this sentence in that it is only limited to young patients. This 3 step process should be performed on every patient, REGARDLESS OF DIAGNOSIS! Every patient should be treated as an individual and not as a diagnosis. Everyone has a different story. Every patient has different needs. Every patient has different goals that are specific to that patient in front of you. The only way that this can be learned by the therapist is by performing a patient-specific evaluation.

​The only way that we know if a patient is actually improving, aside from simply asking them, is to perform tests and measures. When your internet isn’t going as fast as we think it should, we can always run an internet speed test. This is an unbiased way to test the thought that it is running slow. We need the same types of tests and measures in physical therapy. These should be performed by your PT within the first 2 visits.

​Finally, there is a patient reported outcome. This is a way for the patient to answer questions in order to determine if the patient actually believes that they are better or not. The questions have been validated by some research and the form should be universally known.  

“…education about the neurophysiology of chronic pain and contribution of emotional and social factors to the pain experience may be relevant for some patients.”

​Many people still believe that an injury happens and therefore there must be pain. It doesn’t quite work this way. The brain can overcome any of those “inputs” that theoretically can cause pain. For instance, we’ve all heard the story of a person performing feats of strength like lifting a car off a child, but few people hear about the injuries that tend to happen after this feat of strength. The brain can overpower the body’s ability to feel pain. On the flip side, the brain can cause pain without injury. This is a little known fact by many PT’s unfortunately. This type of pain requires a completely different type of treatment than someone that is actively experiencing an injury. This is more complex than can be described in this article, but there will be future posts to describe this phenomenon.  

“…exercise can reduce pain and improve physical function for knee and hip OA…Muscle strengthening can play a role in managing symptoms…Neuromuscular training programs can address sensorimotor deficits often associated with knee injury, including altered muscle activation patterns, proprioceptive impairment, functional instability, and impaired postural control”

​This is a mouthful. To summarize, there is rarely a reason not to “get stronger”. Being strong enables people to do more than being weak. Don’t get me wrong, there are multiple ways to get strong, but there are also multiple ways to get injured while getting strong. Please, if you have little/no experience with strengthening exercises, see a PT or CSCS in order to obtain quality information prior to starting the program.

​Neuromuscular training can be replaced by balance activities. This can teach patients how to utilize the “somatosensory system”, which is the communication that takes place between the muscles, bones and brain in order to remain in a certain position.  

“…neuromuscular exercises can improve knee cartilage quality (glycosaminoglycan content) in middle-aged adults following partial meniscectomy.”

​Every once in a while I learn something new when reading orthopedic research. (just kidding, I am learning every day from the stuff I read). This is a new concept to me. This means that by performing balance training, we can improve the quality of the knee cartilage (meniscus). This is huge because as a health professional, we were always taught that the cartilage has poor blood flow and we can’t really impact healing of this tissue. Who know that balance and exercise were good for you?

“..combining strengthening exercise with exercises aimed at increasing aerobic capacity and flexibility may be the best exercise approach for managing lower-limb OA”

​This has been challenged in the research lately. There is an article by Richard Rosedale (JOSPT 2014) that demonstrates that using MDT can provide superior results. The original advice of diet, exercise and balance is probably still the best advice until more research comes out to show that specific exercises are better than others.  

Hope this synopsis was helpful. If you are experiencing knee pain or have been told that you have arthritis, there are options. Come see me at FTR in Joliet, now a member of the Goodlife Family.  

Dr. Vince Gutierrez, PT, cert. MDT

903 129th Infantry Dr.

Unit 500

Joliet, IL 60435

815-483-2440

QUOTES TAKEN FROM:

Ackerman IN, Kemp JL, Crossley KM, et al. Hip and Knee Osteoarthritis Affects Younger People, Too. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2017;47(2): 67-79.

A quick story

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do…Explore. Dream. Discover” Mark Twain
Where do I start? I come from very humble beginnings. We were a family of 5 growing up on the East side of Joliet. I have 3 brothers and one sister. This changes over time so follow closely. Growing up on the East side wasn’t easy. Access to drugs was though. I smoked my first joint before some kids learned to read, although I learned to read before smoking the joint. My dad used to make me sit down with the Joliet Herald News and read the comics to him. This was from the age of 3 onward. Anytime I would ask him a question, one that readily comes to mind is “why is Australia called the land down under?” He would tell me to look it up. I WAS FIVE! This was before the days of Google. We actually had to go to someone’s house (Terri Graves) of someone that had the old set of encyclopedia Brittanica. I learned the answer from somewhere in that stack. My dad would always say that he was doing it to make me learn, but I don’t think he actually knew the answer and was taking the easy way out. If you knew my dad, he’s never at a loss for saying what’s on his mind. 
I smoked my first joint at 5. Before I got hit by a car on Clay street, which is another good story that I will get to. Marijuana was so easy to come by on the East side. Hell, we were growing it in the backyard. (When I say we, I mostly mean my brothers). I am the youngest of the bunch…the runt of the litter you could say. Wasn’t planned, but i’ve come to accept that over time. Drugs were commonplace, and access to guns was even less restricted. At one point growing up there were guns in almost every room, but that because of a Hatfield-McCoy quarrel that my family had with one of the gangs on the East side in the 1990’s. 
How does a kid from that environment go on to become a Doctor of Physical Therapy? How does one get out of that mindset of drugs, gangs, teenage pregnancy, and high school dropout to go on to study under some of the best minds regarding back pain and dizziness that our country has to offer? Why would that same kid go “straight edge” for over 20 years?
Finally, why would that kid ever want to come back to the streets and city that started it all?
Come see me for any of your aches and pains, dizziness or just to learn the rest of the story. I’m at FTR on Essington. Maybe we could swap stories. 
Dr. Vince Gutierrez, PT, cert. MDT
903 Infantry Drive

Joliet, I’ll

60435

I see patterns

I see patterns, quick flashback to the Sixth Sense.

 

“Nonspecific LBP accounts for the great majority of cases of LBP and is defined as LBP for which there is no identifiable cause (e.g, injury or disease). As a result, treatment recommendations commonly involve a one-size-fits-all approach.”

This is reality. When someone has back pain, it is a guess and a poor one at that as to what is the cause of the back pain. Herniated discs? Sure. Arthritis? Sure, why not. Spinal stenosis? Must be. Cancer? Naw, this one we could rule in or out with imaging. The sinister (read really bad) stuff can be picked up through imaging and is assumed to be the cause of pain. What else is out there? Lumbago…WTF is this about? My favorite is back pain. For real, this is how it works. The patient goes to the doctor with a complaint of back pain and after the end of the session, the doctor says…You have back pain. Here’s your script for back pain. See me in a few weeks.

The problem when we can’t identify different causes of back pain, then all back pain is treated via a “shake and bake” or cookie cutter approach. Is Suzy’s back pain the same as Johnny’s, probably not since the symptoms aren’t even in the same location, but it is still coming from the back so it must be treated the same way. There’s a reason that we as the industry of healthcare have failed in treating back pain…we can’t even define it.

 

“The current treatment classification system (ie, a small group [5%-10%] of patients with identified specific pathology versus the large group [90% -95%] with nonspecific LBP) is clearly not working well.”

Have you seen the numbers?! Not working well is an understatement. Here are some scary stats. The 5-10% that physicians can diagnose are those sinister (read really bad) problems.

“Subgrouping patients in LBP does not need to be complex or difficult”

Everyone subgroups patients. Tony Delitto has stated in an article (It’s late and I don’t want to go find it so trust me…I’m a professional) that everyone classifies patients, but the classifcation system may be very rudimentary. For instance, if someone comes in with a history of back pain and has failed at therapy elsewhere, we would say that this person may fail again. This is a way of classifying, albeit not a good one, but one way. There are methods of classifying back pain (don’t see this as diagnosing) based on signs and symptoms and response to movement or other interventions. This is a slightly more sophisticated way. There are methods that have withstood the rigor of research and demonstrate moderate reliability in the assessment of back pain.

 

“A good example in the LBP field is the STarT Back trial that used a simple prognostic tool (9 questions only) to match patients to treatment packages appropriate for them.”

I was fortunate enough to hear Nadine Foster, one of the authors of the original study, speak at a spine conference in 2013. The questionnaire can help clinicians, especially the primary care coordinator (Physician Assistant, Primary care physician, orthopedist, Advance Nurse Practitioner) determine if the patient may improve without treatment or if PT could be beneficial. The final category that a patient could be classified into is the inclusion of physical therapy with the addition of a psychosocial approach to pain.

 

“Clinicians are usually favorable to the idea of individualized treatments for nonspecific LBP.”

If all back pain were created equal, then I’d be in favor for all treatments being equal. When a patient comes in looking crooked with 9/10 pain, then that patient should not receive the same treatment as someone that has 1/10 pain and is looking to return to sports. Different presentations call for different solutions. There is an excellent book out there for patients and insurance companies called: Rapidly Reversible Low Back Pain by an orthopedic surgeon. He follows the thought and ideas of Robin McKenzie.

“Put simply, if there is a subgroup that does well, it must be balanced by a subgroup that does poorly.”

This research is out there, but because it doesn’t meet the stringent standards of most research studies, it is frowned upon. The problem with the study is that the authors of the study aren’t blinded to the treatments and patient classification. This means that the authors could be biased in one way or another. Aside from this, the study is a legitimate study assessing varying treatment for low back pain. There was one group that did very well and one group that did poorly. One group was in the middle of the two, but leaned more towards poor than well. Check out the study from Audrey Long

“Two aspects of human nature that could explain this situation (treatment effect) are that we tend to see patterns where none exist (patternicity) and that we presume we have more control over events than we truly do (illusion of control).”

This is great stuff. I actually printed off the articles so that I could read them later. I’d love to believe that this isn’t me…but wouldn’t everyone. I’d love to believe that I actually see dead people…I mean patterns and no, not the patterns that people create when they see a shadow and believe it’s a ghost. It does intrigue me though to learn more about pattern recognition.

“…we must conclude that in general, the current research initiatives and achievement in this field are far from optimal and not yet ready to be implemented in clinical practice.”

I wish I could agree with this, but then we are treating all patients the same. If we can’t give individualized instruction to each patient, then it doesn’t matter who the patient sees for their problem. It doesn’t matter that one person’s back pain started 2 years ago and hasn’t subsided or that another’s started this week and is expected to improve with time. Both patient’s would get the same treatment approach if we can’t classify.

 

 

QUITTER

QUITTER
“A recent survey revealed that 84% of employees plan to look for a new job this year ”
I actually think that this number may be higher in the physical therapy field. There are many people dissatisfied with the corporate structure of physical therapy, and I am among that group. I think that every year since 2010 I have reassessed my job outlook and searched for other opportunities.
“a US department of labor study revealed that the median tenure for the 55 to 64-year-old category is 10 years. For the 25 to 34-year-old category, the average tenure is only 3.1 years. ”
This one is interesting. There are multiple classmates of mine that worked 3 to 5 jobs within their first 3 to 5 years in the physical therapy profession. I have been out of school for about 10 years now and I I am on my second job. I have had multiple side hustles along the way, but I am still on my second primary job.
“The golden watch has become the other end of the golden handcuffs. ”
I recently received the silver watch. I’ve been at the hospital that I work for for five years and after five years one receives a Watch. I don’t consider the watch a handcuff, but it is a life ring from my perspective. There are many people that have been at this hospital for well over 20 years. Many people realize the problems within the institution, but few people want to change the institution. As much as I’ve tried to change the institution, I realize my power only go so far and that I will need to leave in order to create that change.
“There is a wiser way to get to your dream job, and it begins by keeping your day job. ”
In PT, I have a dream. Not that major dream from Dr. Martin Luther King, but a dream nonetheless. My dream is to see all patients receive quality care. There are many corporations that provide crap care to patients. I hear it from the patients every day. I recently had a patient who underwent 53 visits of physical therapy for her back pain. After two visits his pain was completely abolished and he rated himself as 100% functional. On the one he read it himself as 60% functional. This is a problem. Corporations should not be allowed to milk the patients. The reason why this continues to happen is because patients are under educated with regards to health care in the business of healthcare. If they knew that we get paid based off of how long they kept us they would start seeing themselves more as a $. Healthcare is a unique business because the patients place their trust in us to be altruistic. Unfortunately, the almighty dollar sign can override altruistic tendencies. 
“When you keep your day job, all opportunities become surplus propositions rather than deficit remedies. You only have to take the ones that suit your dream best. ”
I value educating people. I spend much time reading outside of work and I want to share that knowledge. If I would’ve quit my job in order to go teach at a university or community college, I would actually take a pay cut from what I’m doing today. This is why I do so much on the side so that way I don’t risk losing the pay that I currently have. If I want to quit my day job at the hospital, I would be very stressed for money and would have to take every opportunity that came my way. There are some things in the physical therapy field that I realize I don’t really enjoy doing. I love teaching students that are passionate, but I hate teaching students that are just there to check off a box, which is one of the reasons why I don’t see myself going into education long-term. I struggle to work with students who don’t share the same passion that I have for the profession. Students are spending 90,000 upwards to $200,000 in order to enter this profession, and it kills me to think that there are some students that are just checking off boxes and going with the flow. This is why I am very picky as to which schools I take students from. Some schools have better reputations than others for the quality of students that come out of the school.
“Dreams tend to challenge the status quo… At the heart of a dream is change”
Because my goal is to ensure that the most amount of people receive quality care, I realize that I have to leave the job that I’m at. I’ve been working on my side hustle now for years. This started with educating myself to become a better clinician. I finally feel confident enough in my clinical abilities and my leadership abilities to be able to step away from my job in order to create my dream.
“I’ve met hundreds of people who tell me they’ve never written their books because they are too busy. ”
Count how many times you hear ‘busy’ as the response when asking someone how things are going? How many of us would say ‘productive’? Is life truly busy or unorganized to an extent that it feels ‘busy’ and rushed? I stopped saying busy. I take at least 45 minutes to watch tv with my family per day. This is usually “Curious George”, but still unproductive time. I recently went to EntreLeadership 1 Day and the talk by Christy Wright was AWESOME. It had to do with prioritizing your top 5 priorities. I no longer feel that George is wasted time because it meets a priority of spending time with the family. I have more time now that I have prioritized my days. 
“You don’t ask the bottom less, ‘what do I want to do with my life?’ but instead, “what have I done in my life that I loved doing? ”
I have always been against bullying. I have always been the helper. I didn’t realize it at the age of 5, but that’s my earliest memory. There was a group of bullies that pushed a girl. I went berserk. Think of the movie A Christmas Story. It was kind of like that. They got me back later, but it was all three of them together to get me back. My point is that I stick up for people that are being bullied. The problem is that some people are naive or ignorant and don’t realize that they are being bullied. When I say “ignorant”, I literally mean that they don’t have the knowledge to know that they are being bullied. There are very few reasons that I can think to keep a patient in the clinic for over an hour and fewer still to keep them for more than 6-12 visits. Obviously there are some patients that will need more, but in an orthopedic setting we don’t tend to see that.
“A hinge moment occurs when you are planning to do something standard and normal, something you’ve done many times before… And then seemingly out of nowhere, something, a small detail usually, hinges you in a different direction.”

Way back 2009, I was offered a job by Mickey Shah. I turned it down. That was my hinge moment. I knew that if I had taken that job that I would be riding on the tail of Mickey my entire career. I wasn’t ready for that. I needed to take charge of my own education. I need to create my own presence. I need to create my own brand. And I have spent the last 7 to 8 years doing just that. 
“The things that you create and share will always outperform the things that stay stuck in your head or your desk or your laptop. ”
Last year was my step out into the public via a blog. I had 5,000+ views last year and already increased that by over 50% for the year, this year. Had I not done anything, the ideas would’ve taken me no where. I’ve met and conversed with many people this year and I believe it’s because of the writings. 
“You have the perfect amount of time each day for the things that matter most. The key is spending time on those things.”
Improving my role as husband and father

Improving my skills as a PT

Improving my teaching of PT to students and other professionals

Exercise

These are my priorities. The order changes as the seasons change. Some times I may have to devote more energy to teaching compared to learning. Some times I need to exercise because the other aspects have become too overwhelming. The average American watches 4.3 hours of tv per day. I may watch one hour of either news or a show my wife wants to watch. I find that in order to accomplish my 4 priorities, that there just is t enough time to know who married who or who got voted off the (insert modern reality tv show). 
“When enough people ask when you’re quitting, you start to feel dumb for staying. ”
This has started happening to me in the last year. I keep hearing “you don’t belong here…you think differently…you’re work ethic is different from everyone else”. Why have I stayed? The incentive to leave wasn’t greater than the safety of staying. The incentive just grew by leaps and bounds. My wife and I have a daughter with special needs. I don’t know what her future holds, but I have a responsibility to give her every opportunity to succeed. People say that money is t everything, but few people can prosper on social insecurity alone. Since her birth, I have driven the pedal down and pushed forward and harder than I have ever done in the past. My family is my inspiration to work harder now. I’ve always taken pride in being good at my job, but now I want the prestige and rewards that come with hustle and work. I’ve been grossly underpaid and have settled because of job safety for a long time, but that is rapidly ending. It’s time to leave the cave, kill something and drag it home, as Dave Ramsey would say. 
“Bad employees make horrible dreamers. You can’t loaf on your day job all week and then expect to magically throw the switch on the weekend and hustle on your dream. ”
I’ve always lived by a phrase “all hustle, no talent”. Obviously, I overstate the talent part, but I want to be known for work ethic. It’s one of the few things that I can control. In 2003 I was voted as employee of the year at Sam’s club and quit soon thereafter. The worst thing that can happen for me is to have no where to move up towards. I need a goal and an ability to continue to rise. I have no where left to transition to st my current place of employment and my boss is aware that I am leaving. I need to do bigger things next year than I did this year. I can say without a doubt that this has held true year to year. 
“The first thing you need is a passion. Like Malcolm Gladwell’s unquenchable curiosity to explore the unexpected relationships between things, you need a passion that will drive you forward.”
I’ve thought a lot about this through self reflection. What drives a person? Anger is a strong force and has driven me for a long time and continues to drive me. There was an interview with Lewis Howes (from The School of Greatness Podcast) on The Art of Manliness Podcast and he discusses how he was driven by anger for a long time. The problem with being driven by anger is that one is never fully satisfied because there is never enough positive to drown out the negative. I continue to be driven more by anger than by happiness. I see an injustice and I want to work to fix it. I see people being taken for a ride and I want to stop it. In PT, I see patients getting garbage care (if I could even honor it by calling it care) and I want to stop it. For every patient that receives garbage care (this means that the therapist is not providing treatment, but instead delegating treatment to someone unqualified, this means that the therapist is doing more harm with their words than good with their interventions, this means that a therapist is not empowering the patient to take charge of their health, this means a lot of things), I want to stop it because it gives my profession, and therefore me a negative reputation. 
“It’s not that difficult to be trans parent to a group of 10 readers. You realize that if you say something they don’t like and they all stop supporting your dream, you can always start over.”
This is something that I have struggled with over the last year. The movementthinker blog is finally starting to get readers, and the last thing that I wanted to do was to alienate any of the readers. Now, I don’t care as much about alienating readers as much as I care about me being me. If I lose readers, so be it. This is not meant to make me any money, but instead is an avenue to allow me to vent my thoughts. 
“It ultimately worked because I hustled… To push harder than the other person. To dream further. To work longer and faster… I don’t think any of the information in this book works without applying hustle to it. That’s the key. ”
This is the mantra to success. Some people are born into wealth and success. With that said, they have the blueprint from their fathers and forefathers for success. They have the shortcuts branded into them so that they don’t have to go through the heartaches of life. For instance, I started my career already 100K behind. I had to take jobs that paid the bills because I had a lot of bills to pay. My child won’t have to work for money the same way that I did, but they will have the privilege of learning from my mistakes and obtaining advices learned the hard way. I want my children to work and be successful, but I want them to be able to keep the money they earn instead of giving it away to lenders or poor investments. 
This is why I hustle. 
“Hustle is not hard.”
“Take it easy” is a phrase that gets said instead of goodbye. It kills me! I don’t want to take it easy. It took a lot of work to get to where I’m at in life, but that is the work that in used to doing on a daily basis. For me to take it easy is stressful. I have trouble not accounting for my time. I hear from colleagues that they wish that they could read as much as I do or invest as much time into the profession as I do, and I think BullShit! Everything we do is a choice. Hopefully, we have a list of priorities and are scheduling our day in order to maximize these priorities and minimize distractions. I’m okay if some therapists don’t prioritize their career or profession over other priorities such as family or religion, but to state that they wish there was more time is a fallacy. We all work with the same 24, but may work the hours differently. 
“I want the peace in knowing that it wasn’t for lack of hustle that I missed a target for my dream.”
When I was competing in powerlifting, I lived by the phrase ‘No regrets!’ I walked out of the gym on a daily basis knowing that I did my programming as best as possible to compete and place in the top 3. I’ve never been the strongest or the best at any one lift, but I worked my tail off. That work ethic carries over to everything that I do. If I were a street sweeper, which I’ve been, then I work hard to make sure I am among the best sweepers. That hustle comes from somewhere, but I don’t know where that hustle originated. 

“Hustle fills you up. Burn out empties you. Hustle renews your energy. Burn out drains it. Hustle impacts every other aspect of your life in a positive way as you learn to prioritize the things that matter. Burn out impacts every other aspect of your life in a negative way and your dream becomes the only thing that matters.”
Acuff J. Quitter: CLOSING THE GAP BETWEEN YOUR DAY JOB & YOUR DREAM JOB. Brentwood, TN: Lampo Licensing,LLC. 2011.

Get PT 2nd

“out of 137 patients, 100 had been recommended for spinal fusion. After evaluation, the group advised 58 of those patients to pursue a non operative plan of care”
There’s a slogan going around social media saying “GETPT1ST” I don’t know if I completely agree with the saying, but I can’t disagree with that either. The saying could just as well be get PT second. At some point a second opinion has to come in to play for a patient’s dysfunctions or pain. That second opinion, in my belief, has to come from someone without a financial stake in the surgery. This could be a physiatrist, PT, or a separate surgeon, which was done in the study cited. 
The take home point is that 58% of those recommended for spinal fusion were recommended to seek a separate form of care, thus advised to avoid the surgery initially. What this means for the patients is that a second opinion should always be sought out, because the person advising a plan of care is advising it from their perspective. I’d love to say that everyone has the patient’s best interest in mind, but I can’t. In that case, the patient must become more educated and advocate for him/herself. For instance, a surgeon does surgery, a physical therapist does physical therapy and a physiatrist does physiatry. We see problems from different lenses and therefore will advise different plans of care for varying presentations. Some patients need surgery and some don’t. Some patients need physical therapy and some don’t. We can’t say PT first because PT is not magic and can’t fix everyone’s issues. 
“As clinicians, we bring our own biases into the treatment plan for patients”
Want to decrease unnecessary surgeries? Have a multidisciplinary team do evaluations, researchers say. PT in Motion. April 2017:46.