Tuesday, January 21, 2020

What is Manual Physiotherapy anyway?


What is Manual Physiotherapy?




 You might have noticed that the phrase “manual physiotherapy” is associated with our clinic. Interestingly, we are frequently asked, ‘What is manual physiotherapy and how is it different from other forms of physiotherapy?’ These are great questions but the answers aren’t necessarily as simple as you might think.



First and foremost, the term manual physiotherapy indicates that someone is trained to use their hands as treatment tools. This isn’t all that different from manual labor and using a shovel to dig a hole when compared to, for example, utilizing a machine such as a backhoe. To a certain extent all physiotherapists use hands-on techniques but some of us have more advanced training in this part of our profession. So, in short, we are hands-on experts within physiotherapy. One of the results of this is that when you come to the clinic you can anticipate more one-on-one time with a highly skilled physiotherapist than you would find in an environment where each clinician provides more hands-off treatments.


 


This answer, however, is only the beginning. We are certified Fellows of the Canadian Academy of Manual Physiotherapy (FCAMPT; https://manippt.org). As Fellows of the Academy, we have completed internationally recognized specialty training that involves both classroom and clinical training on all anatomical regions. This type of training also includes advanced education in therapeutic exercise, pain science, advances in scientific research, and clinical reasoning, the last of which might also be described as skillful thinking. In short, education programs recognized by the Academy are designed to teach an already registered physiotherapist how to evaluate and treat patients with greater effectiveness and efficiency. The end result is that Fellows are better able to identify and resolve the problems that patients bring to a physiotherapy clinic, which is why we think you should always keep us in mind when you are having any type of body pains or should you specifically need to see a physio.


 
Don't be shy if you have any questions, we would love to hear from you. You can contact us by phone at 613-363-1696 or e-mail at shannon@shannonmarion.ca or stephen@shannonmarion.ca.

 

If you are feeling the need to have that manual therapy itch scratched, you can also book online below.