Your First Visit At Soul PT
Soul PT therapists are highly accomplished licensed professionals who will help you reduce pain, improve strength and mobility, and delay or avoid the need for surgery and long-term medication. They are here for you Monday - Friday, year round. You can call or email to schedule an appointment, or drop in for a free screening. Most insurance companies no longer require physician referrals for physical therapy. The staff at Soul PT can confirm that with your provider. Whether this is your first visit or you've been treated by a physical therapist in the past, there are a few things you can do to make your visit a success.
Before Your Visit:
Beverly Danvers
Click the image above to download our intake paperwork PDF.
Open the file, it is set up to let you fill it out electronically.
Print it out and bring it to your first appointment
This will leave more time for assessment and treatment.
Make a list of any questions that you have, to make the best use of your time with your physical therapist.
Write down any symptoms you've been having, and note their duration. If you have more than one symptom, begin with the one that is the most bothersome to you. Is your pain or symptom:
- Better or worse with certain activities or movements or with certain positions, such as sitting or standing?
- More noticeable at certain times of day?
- Relieved or made worse by resting?
- Confined to one location, or does it travel down into one of your limbs?
Write down key information about your medical history, even if it seems unrelated to the condition for which you are seeing the physical therapist. For example:
- Make a list of all prescription and over-the-counter medications, vitamins, and supplements that you are taking.
- Make a note of any important personal information, including any recent stressful events, injuries environmental factors, or sleep disturbances.
- Tell your physical therapist and clinic staff if you have a hard time seeing or hearing.
Bring any relevant lab, diagnostic, or medical reports, if available, from other health care professionals who have treated you for your current condition.
Bring a list of the names of your physician and other health care professionals that you would like your physical therapist to contact regarding your evaluation and your progress.
You should wear loose-fitting clothes and comfortable footwear that you can move in to your first visit. Workout clothes and sneakers are perfect.
What to Expect When You Come In:
Thoughtful questions: Your physical therapist will ask about your health and about the specific condition for which you are seeking physical therapy.
Comprehensive exam: Depending on your symptoms and condition, your therapist may evaluate your strength, flexibility, balance, coordination, posture, blood pressure, and heart and respiration rates.
Goal setting: Your physical therapist will work with you to determine your goals for physical therapy and will begin to develop a plan for your treatment. In many cases, your therapist will make a diagnosis and begin treatment immediately.
Home exercises: Your physical therapist may teach you special exercises to do at home. You may also learn new and different ways to perform your activities at work and home. These new techniques can help minimize pain, reduce strain, avoid re-injury, and speed up your recovery.
Inter-professional communication: Your physical therapist will communicate the important information from your examination to your physician and to other health care professionals at your request.