Welcome to Integrated Health Sciences / iPT where we pride ourselves on offering the highest level of current anatomy, physiology, pathology and corrective exercise information on the web. iPT is our clinic in the west village where we offer physical therapy expertise, along with exceptional service, to make your experience as beneficial and enjoyable as possible. iPT is dedicated to becoming the premier rehabilitation provider in the NYC Metro area by redefining the standard for healthcare and physical medicine. Founded on the philosophy that exceptional people can achieve exceptional results, our goal is to create an environment of healing and wellness, which extends beyond the walls of the clinic and into the community. What is Physical Therapy
Physical therapy is a health care specialty which involves evaluating, diagnosing, and treating disorders of the musculoskeletal and neuromuscular systems. The ultimate goal of physical therapy is to restore maximum functional independence to each individual patient by identifying specific physical impairments. These typically include decreases in range of motion and strength, resulting in increased pain. We will not only focus on the area where pain is present, but will dig deeper to appropriately address the driving dysfunction. In short, we look at our patients as complete entities, realizing that there are many connections within the body, as well as factors from your home and work environment. For example, a knee could never function solo; every body part has to work in harmony
Why Physical Therapy
Typically patients are here because of an injury, surgery, or a feeling that their body is not the way it once was and want a better quality of life. Everyone has physical impairments of the body, such as a weak hamstring or a stiff mid-back; however, sometimes the accumulation of these impairments is enough to result in damage, which will be perceived as pain. It is important to realize that even though the pain may have started at a specific time, in general, these impairments were present beforehand, and addressing these deficiencies will help take a patient back to being symptom free. We are here to identify these primary reasons and have you, as the patient, help us to effectively address them with specific intervention tailored to your individual condition. The Start of Our Trip
Your first visit is of utmost importance, in order to determine the road we will travel together. Be prepared to answer questions about yourself and your condition, as we are doing our best to be detectives for the deficits that are causing you to perceive pain. In addition to the gathering of this subjective information, we will also be asking you to stand, sit, walk, bend, rotate, balance, and contract muscles, in order to get a better idea of exactly where your body is performing at peak levels and where it has deviated from the norm. This objective data, in addition to orthopedic special tests, will all be synthesized, in order to determine the clinical diagnosis and best exercises and interventions for you and your body, taking into account your own strengths and weaknesses. You will also have a hands-on treatment session and will be given a home exercise program. This home exercise program may only consist of a few exercises at the beginning, but it is extremely important in your rehabilitation because they are the safest exercises that are most beneficial for you given your condition. It takes a minimum of 1,500 times to master a given task, and being that you spend a lot more time outside of the clinic than you do in the facility, your participation is mandatory to ensure best results. Remember, we are here to facilitate your healing and need you to be an active participant in this process. The Road
Physical Therapy and rehabilitation is a journey with a finite beginning and end. Hopefully, now you understand the start of the journey, so let’s talk about the road. Each session is equally important and has specific goals to move you toward your target of discharge with optimum function. Every time you come in, we will use a combination of treatment techniques to progress you towards your personal goals. Some of exercises may appear basic in the beginning but realize that we have to build a foundation to have a safe home. Just as after an injury our bodies may become hyper-sensitive to any and all stimulus, it is important to realize that we may need to decrease activity in some areas in order to allow an increased activity in others. We will guide you and take you to places you have not been before but you have to see the sights for yourself. Physical therapy is an active process, and we can’t forget that each stop or treatment session has a specific purpose and will bring you closer to your eventual goals, so proper attendance is mandatory. Arrival at your Destination
If you stay on course and physical therapy is appropriate for you, eventually you can be a proud graduate of this program. This point is not simply when you are pain-free, but it is when both you and your therapist have decided together that you are now less susceptible to injury and able to perform the tasks that you desire. After your discharge, it is Imperative that you continue to do the exercises you have been performing at PT to maintain your new found level of function.
