Physiotherapy in geriatric rehabilitation

 

There are many things involved With the rehabilitation Of geriatric patients; the speech therapist, the chiropodist, the orthopaedic surgeon, the physical medicine consultant, the porters, the ward maids, of these people can have an excellent effect. We physiotherapist in Bangalore work extremely closely With the occupational therapists Without whom our task would be made that much more difficult and who complement our work.

 

 Role of Geriatrician

 

The geriatrician is the co-ordinator Of all our efforts and his are the hands Which hold the reins for our guidance. Much of our rehabilitation would be wasted if we weren't on good terms with or didn't work on the same lines as the nurses. It is infuriating to ascertain nurses lifting a patient out of bed, When we have spent an extended time teaching her to try to to it herself. The ultimate aims Of geriatric rehabilitation are an equivalent as in the other field of medicine—the restoration of independence and therefore the maximum possible restoration of physical and mental functions. I think the most important Step is to get the patient out Of bed at the earliest possible moment the illness permits; bed may be a dangerous instrument and has more side-effects than the foremost potent medicines yet it's still prescribed and used casually, and within the case Of the older patient is that much more dangerous. Asher says, "rest in bed is anatomically, physically and psychologically unsound. Look at the patient lying in bed, what a pathetic picture he makes, the blood clotting in his veins, the lime draining from his bones, the scybalus blocking his colon, the flesh rotting from his seat, the urine leaking from his distended bladder, and the spirit evar  orating from his soul."  who have not experienced working in geriatrics think it must be boring but it is not; they think there is no future in it but there is, for it is so rewarding and a great challenge to send an oldster back to his or her place in society.

 

Physiotherapy for geriatric patients
 

 Physiotherapy for geriatric patients is far an equivalent as physiotherapy for the other patient, only it's taken at a slower tempo and it requires constant repetition. After the Older patient has been acutely ill he may suffer from confusion, brain damage, or anaemia resulting in disorientation and lack Of comprehension, lack Of confidence, fear Of falling Or walking or lack of energy. His haemoglobin level may be low, and the drugs which cured his acute illness may have side-effects like diarrhoea or dizziness. The lack of the will to live is probably the most difficult to overcome. Maybe the patient has outlived all her generation of family and friends and is not very happy living with a daughter and son-in-law with two or three grandchildren. We at physiotherapy centers in Bangalore has described most of the equipment we use. In addition to these we have parallel bars and a mirror in the department so that the patients can actually see What they are doing when they are walking. Toe-raising calipers and plaster of Paris or some form of plastic back slabs also are used, because patients often sag at the knees when they try to walk and it is hard work trying to hold them up. If you bandage their knees rigidly first, it's a great help. We use a technique called proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation which was developed in America; it involves maximal contractions of the muscles you're trying to use and helps the re-education Of the muscles. One person upon whom this method has been used is not in fact a geriatric patient but had a severe stroke and is now almost completely recovered.

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