I never had a goal to be rated one of the best physical therapists in Glendale Arizona. I have always found the criterion and standards to be voted “the Best” of anything to be narrow scope. Everyone has their own criteria. It was my goal to be one of the most compassionate. Again, I’m not sure how to rate that fairly but I’ll let the reviews speak for themselves.
If I were to declare the standards necessary to be voted “The Best Physical Therapist Near Me”, this is what I would judge.
Passionate
Being a physical therapist requires energy. The best physical therapists are always pouring energy into their patients. Deciding to get treatment doesn’t come easy. There is a lot of time and money dedicated to the process of recovery. You won’t want to waste it dealing with someone who is not one of the best physical therapists. This will show up in how they talk to you about your condition and its effect on your life. Firstly, you’ll hear their passion when they tell you what is going on and how they plan to help. Secondly, if you don’t feel excited about getting treatment from them after they describe the plan. In conclusion, then you’re not dealing with one of the best.
Side benefits from passionate caregivers are hope and optimism. Imagine if Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh was your physical therapist! Do you think you would even have a chance at getting better without any hope or positivity? When you’re in pain and facing an uncertain future about your health, the best physical therapists will find out how they can inject hope and positivity in your case. This is a skill only the best physical therapists have because not every case has room for obvious doses of positivity and hope.
Curious
The field of medicine is ever-changing. The best physical therapists are always searching for the most effective treatments for their patients. With the internet and since COVID, so many learning resources are available online, it just takes the curious spark to pursue it. Curiosity also shows up during your evaluation in the type of questions they ask and the clinical tests performed. Do they know why you are seeking treatment? If you just say “because I’m in pain” then I have to ask, do YOU know why you’re seeking treatment? People don’t commit to physical therapy because of pain, people will suffer from pain for years. Something changed urging patients to get help and resolve their pain.
These are some of the many reasons I hear:
- Preparing for an event or race and the thought of not being able to participate is a compromise they are not willing to make.
- Preparing for a vacation that will require more activity AND are worried they will slow down or interfere with the experience of the people they are with because of their physical limitations.
- Growing fear they’ll need addictive pain pills, injections, or surgery if this continues without treatment.
- They notice as they age simple tasks becoming more difficult and they are worried they will lose their independence and require help from loved ones.
And the one that hurts me the most when I hear it…
- They recognize they are no longer able to take care of loved ones (husband, children, or grandchildren) the way they want and are worried they will no longer be able to. Which forces them to confront their identity and who they are.
I have cried with my patients when they tell me they have spent the last 15 years caring for other people and made it a habit to ignore themselves and feel stuck in pain with no way out. Now they can hardly walk, bend over to pick up grandkids or sit in the bleachers to watch their grandkid’s sports.
The pain was there all along but they chose to ignore it because it was inconvenient to deal with.
Compassionate
The Best physical therapist must be able to show sympathy for their patients. When you share with them your fears and concerns then you must be able to trust they will not judge. Like the previous example of the young grandmother feeling stuck and unable to care for her family the way she wants. She ignored the signs “something was wrong” for years because they were inconvenient to deal with. Until now when she feels hopeless a recovery can even be possible. If the physical therapist judges you by blaming you for getting yourself into this situation or says “you should have known better” they are not the best physical therapist.
Why is compassion so important for a physical therapist to have?
The reason compassion is so important is that it helps the physical therapist provide better care. A study done in 2008 showed radiologists improved their accuracy of reports when a photo of the patient was included with their x-ray or MRI images. Now, why would their accuracy improve just by having a photo of the patient? Because it connects two humans! The photo of the patient served as a reminder for the radiologist what was at stake and challenged them to be more mindful in their report.
We have the chance to be the best physical therapist when we know you and what you are trying to accomplish. This treatment plan is solely for you to succeed.
Humble
This characteristic has a lot to do with bedside manner. How approachable is your physical therapist? The best physical therapist will know you are the best at knowing your body. Too often we get patients who have tried physical therapy somewhere else and said they were “pushed too hard” and felt the PT wasn’t listening.
Listen to our Healthy Lifestyles podcast for more information on health topics: https://preferredptaz.com/podcast/
Why should a physical therapist be humble?
Having humility will allow the best physical therapist to listen to your concerns about the prescribed treatment plan and be open to hearing how you might think it could be better. The best won’t act disinterested or dismissive of your ideas. Instead, they will be open to hearing them and create opportunities for you to report how you are doing. In our model of care, we do this during the first few minutes of your visit. We want to know how you are doing? What has changed? What’s different? What is working for you? What is not working for you and where are you struggling? This helps each visit be tailored to you and your goals as we navigate your path to recovery together.
Being humble allows the physical therapist to avoid the arrogance commonly associated with medical providers causing the patient to feel distant and alone.
The best physical therapists are passionate, curious, compassionate, and humble. When shopping around for what is right for you then you should be on the lookout for these characteristics to know who is best for you.
Dr, Nick’s greatest passion is seeing his patients recover from injury and return to their activities that bring them joy.
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