FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

health record is created any time you see a health professional such as a doctor, nurse, dentist, chiropractor, or psychiatrist. You could find the following in your health record: Physiotherapy is a branch of medicine that specializes in the treatment of pain, decreasing dysfunction and the restoration of normal function by using a variety of methods. Therapists are highly trained medical rehabilitation specialists that have extensive training in anatomy, mechanics, exercise prescription and treatment techniques to help their patients achieve the best possible outcomes. Treatment is much more than just massage, even if hands on techniques such as myofascial releasing and massage are often used as part of a treatment session. Joint mobilization, muscle and nerve stretching, electrotherapy, exercise and education also play a big role in creating the ideal treatment program for each patient.
Physiotherapy is useful in the conservative treatment of a wide variety of conditions ranging from orthopedic, respiratory, exercise physiology to women's health. Conditions we treat at Vitalite are listed below. For more details on the conditions, click here. Orthopedic[arrow_list_two]
  • Neck and back pain
  • Headaches
  • Muscle, tendon and ligament strains
  • Arthritis - Osteo and rheumatoid arthritis
[/arrow_list_two] Women's Health[arrow_list_two]
  • Urge and stress incontinence
  • Pre and post natal
  • Manual lymphatic drainage
[/arrow_list_two] Respiratory[arrow_list_two]
  • Bronchitis, Pneumonia
  • Asthma, COPD
[/arrow_list_two] Exercise Physiology[arrow_list_two]
  • Medically controlled exercise and weight loss
  • Exercise programs for high risk patients such as arthritis
  • Yoga
  • Pilates
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Physiotherapy is a first line practitioner status. This means that the therapists have the skills and expertise to assess and treat patients directly. However, if it is to be covered by your health insurance, we do require a doctor's referral to claim on your behalf.
Hands on physical therapy sessions have the advantage that the therapist has continuous feedback what is happening during a treatment. It is also comfortable and soothing for the patient. The treatment can then be individualized for every patient.
Sessions can vary from 30 to 45 minutes depending on the condition the patient is suffering from and the treatment required. The first session will always consist of a discussion and assessment of the problems experienced. The therapist will then perform specific tests and review all investigations to determine a diagnosis. The patients expectations of the therapy can then be discussed from which the treatment plan and goals can be made. Treatment will include a variety of techniques such as mobilizations, massage, stretches and electrotherapy amongst other options. At the end of the session, there should be some discussion about correcting lifestyle factors, including specific rehabilitation exercises. The progress and further planning of sessions can then also be done.
This will depend on the problem being treated. If pain is the main problem then the aim is to get relief. We try and achieve this as soon as possible, but it can take between 2-6 sessions. If there is no significant change in this time then a reassessment should be done and other investigations or options considered.Treatment should be soothing and relaxing and should not flare up the symptoms. Other conditions that need a change of mechanics or recovery from surgery can require some uncomfortable treatment techniques to achieve the desired changes. This should always be within the patients pain tolerance levels and you should always give feedback to your therapist. The amount of sessions will vary according to how long the problem has been present, but a good guide would be 6 - 10 sessions with progress being felt and measured. If there is no change after 4-6 sessions a change of treatment or further investigations may be needed. Remember, normal tissue healing following trauma or surgery follows a predictable pattern. This would mean that normal recovery following surgery or injury can take between 6-12 weeks, but small recovery changes can continue for up to 9 months after surgery/injury. For pelvic floor rehabilitation, the process will depend on how weak the muscles are before treatment and how much home exercises the patient is doing, but the treatment usually consists of 10-20 sessions done 2-3 times a week.
Yoga is a body and mind exercise aimed at reducing stress by correcting breathing and relaxing muscles. It involves active and passive stretching to increase muscle length and improve joint movement. Pilates is a strengthening program that uses body weight and equipment to strengthen the core muscles. These are the muscles surrounding the spine that give support and are usually weak in patients with neck and back pain. The combination of Pilates and Yoga is good to improve both flexibility and stability
Some patients are afraid to exercise because it may aggravate their symptoms. This can include arthritis patients, heart patients or patients that are overweight. The therapist or exercise physiologist works out an individualized program and guides the patient through it while constantly monitoring and adapting as required.
Due to the stress and nature of work today, most employees will suffer from neck or back pain at some stage. This results in decreased productivity and time off work. The corporate physio program aims to reduce time off work by doing office assessments of computer and table/chair setup. The program can also identify risk factors and design either individual or group programs to address these. The end result will be an ergonomically correct office setup with the possibility of worker exercises and advice programs.