Medical Rehabilitation
What is Medical Rehabilitation?
Rehabilitation is a process of active change by which an injured or disabled person achieves optimal physical, psychological and social function. It is used to assist after many types of injury, illness or disease, including amputations, neurological problems, orthopaedic and spinal cord and traumatic brain injuries.
Early rehabilitation has been shown to be hugely beneficial to an injured person’s physical and mental recovery from his or her injuries. It can also include assisting the injured person to compensate for a deficit, such as the loss of a limb, which cannot be reversed medically. The injured person’s quality of life, wishes and expectations need to be addressed at the earliest practical opportunity.
There are wide ranging types of rehabilitation dealing with the provision of therapies, for example physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, orthotists, prosthetists and nursing care, and practical steps such as adapting accommodation, assisting with mobility and transport.
Physical therapy can be used to help restore the use of muscles, bones and the nervous system by using heat, massage, exercise and other techniques. The aim it to relieve pain, improve strength and mobility and enable the injured person to perform day to day activities.
Occupational therapy can be used to help the injured person regain the ability to do normal everyday tasks. This might be achieved by restoring the ability to perform old skills by making modifications to the home such as rearranging the furniture or installing lifts, bars or wheelchair ramps. It might be learning new skills to adapt to injury such as learning to walk with crutches or artificial limbs.
Speech therapy can be used to help the injured person restore speech and correct speech disorders. This might be achieved by the use of facial exercises to strengthen muscles, picture books and cards to help the injured person remember everyday objects and communicate with others and computer programs.
We at Clarke Willmott can assist in securing early medical rehabilitation assessments and support.
