Your partner for physical therapy in NW Boise.
Whether a patient is dealing with an injury, recovering and rehabilitating after surgery, or looking to take their sports performance to the next level, their physical therapy journey begins with an evaluation. At Therapeutic Associates Physical Therapy – NW Boise, the evaluation is much more than simply assessing your physical condition. Here, the care team is invested in every patient’s unique situation, beginning with their goals.
“Every patient is so different, so tailoring our treatment style, our game plan for their whole episode of care and even their home exercise program to fit their lifestyle and their goals is really the biggest part,” explained Katie Duke, physical therapist and practice manager at the Northwest Boise PT clinic.
Uncovering a patient’s goals through open communication is an important aspect of their first visit.
“I ask patients flat out, ‘What are your goals?’ And whether that’s to run a marathon or be able to play with their grandkids, if we can tailor things specifically to them and set up functional goals that are personal to them,” Katie explained, “then, they’re going to have more buy-in to physical therapy, to their exercises and to the whole plan of care.”
As an exercise specialist who works closely with patients during their appointments — ensuring they are doing their exercises safely and effectively — Justin Seamons agrees and values getting to know each individual beyond their injury. While working one-on-one with a patient, Justin explained, he can get to know what activities they like and what they do in the community. That insight helps the team connect a patient’s exercises with their goals.
“You can give a patient exercises to do at home and they will see some benefit, but if you can target their exercises and show them how they will help them specifically with an activity in their life, they will be more committed and see even more benefit from doing them,” Justin said.
Beyond learning about a patient’s goals and what they hope to get out of physical therapy, an initial evaluation includes an objective physical assessment in which the PT tests range of motion and strength.
“We want to figure out where your pain is coming from so that we can solve the root of the problem and not just treat your symptoms,” Katie said.
The physical assessment also gives the physical therapy care team a baseline to work from, so that during follow-up visits, a reassessment will show how much progress has been made.
“Each time we see you, in addition to rechecking things like range of motion and strength, we review your home program to see how things are going and touch base on your goals to see if you’ve had improvements and if your pain levels have changed,” Katie said. “If a patient says they haven’t done their home exercise, we ask why and try to determine what the barrier is so we can help with that.”
Making modifications to the home program is a simple way to ensure a patient is getting the most out of their physical therapy, Justin added.
“If there are any concerns or questions about their exercises, if they didn’t like something or found they don’t have the space or the equipment at home for certain things, we can tweak them or find alternatives that work the same muscle groups and still benefit them in their recovery,” he said.
This is one aspect of the care team model that is particularly beneficial for patients.
“They get to work with more than one person, they get multiple perspectives or different twists on ways to do things that maybe one person on the care team might not have seen or recognized that we can help them out with,” Justin explained.
Having a care team in place also ensures patients have someone with them throughout their sessions in the clinic, to check their exercise form, guide them and answer any questions they have. That extra one-on-one time with patients also provides the team — PTs, assistants, aides and exercise specialists — with insight that allows them to customize treatment plans throughout a patient’s physical therapy journey.
“Our team is always communicating,” Katie shared. “We’re giving feedback to each other, such as if a patient is struggling with a certain exercise and we need to regress a little, or maybe they look really great during an appointment, and we talk about progressing their exercises. We’re talking about it and making a game plan together.”
Beyond treating patients for pain issues or injuries, rehabbing after surgery and working with individuals on injury prevention, the PT team at NW Boise offers physical therapy for performance enhancement.
“We really like to train sports teams and work with all types of athletes here,” Katie said. “We have a nice gym with the space for them to really push themselves.”
From agility and strength training to sports-specific exercises and activities, the PT team enjoys helping athletes advance their abilities, pursue higher levels and reach their personal goals.
The physical therapy care team’s goal is to equip patients with the knowledge and skills to continue progressing even after they finish physical therapy.
“I’m really a believer in ‘You’re an athlete for life at whatever level you are.’ So, whether that’s training for races or running around playing with your kids or grandkids, everyone should be moving in their daily life – that is what I want to instill in my patients,” Katie shared. “When a patient leaves after their final visit, it’s not the end of their physical therapy relationship with us.”
While the hope is always that when a patient completes their PT journey, they have the knowledge, tools, skills and confidence to continue their progress independently or to manage their symptoms if something should come up again, the team at Therapeutic Associates NW Boise also wants every patient to know they can call, email or stop by if they ever need to.
“We love being a part of the Boise community and being a resource for people here,” Justin said. “We want everyone to be able to be out enjoying the things they like to do.”
Get moving with physical therapy.
At Therapeutic Associates Physical Therapy – NW Boise, we are committed to providing effective, efficient, and compassionate care to help you live a pain-free, active life.