In the last post I shared what led me to choose this profession. I figured PT month was the perfect time to share my story. Well, I also figured it’s the best time to share why I love PT. It’s not to say there are no negatives to this profession. That’s definitely not the case. But it’s always easier to focus on the negatives and PT month is the perfect opportunity to take a step back and remember the positives. Here’s four things I love about PT.
1.) Getting to Spend Quality Time with My Patients
There are a lot of healthcare professionals that can’t say this. The reality is many healthcare providers get maybe only 15 min of facetime or less with their patients. Oftentimes that 15 min is just getting down to business because they need to get to the important stuff. Sometimes there’s not even enough time for that!
In PT though, I get 30 minutes to an hour of one-on-one time with my patient. During that time not only do I get to learn all about their pain, mobility deficits, and goals, but also about them as a person. I get to hear about their families, their hobbies, what they did over the weekend, how their trip went, even what they’re watching on Netflix. I get to build that deeper relationship and report with them.
I know what some of you are thinking – Yes, as PTs we do get to do this UNLESS you’re working at a PT mill! And to be honest that’s a whole other issue. If you’re practicing how PT SHOULD be practiced, then you’re able to have this experience. And yes, sometimes it can be exhausting to deal with people all day. As an introverted-extrovert I feel this deeply.
However, given the choice between only 15 minutes with patients and having subpar relationships with them OR get more time and be able to make a meaningful, strong report that leads to better outcomes, I’m sure you’d choose the latter. When it comes to getting quality time with patients, PT is one of the most unique health professions. We have the opportunity for a different level of patient-provider relationship not everyone else gets.
2.) There’s Always Something New to Learn
Some may say this next one is a curse, but personally I love it. I love that there is always something new to learn in our profession. You could be a PT for one year, five years, ten, even twenty and there is still plenty you don’t know.
Anytime I learn a new exercise or technique I still get a little bit excited to use it on the next patient who needs it. There’s also new research coming out every day to help inform our clinical decisions. I do admit, keeping up with research can be hard sometimes. I’ve actually discussed this in a previous post. However, I’m always happy I have that knowledge afterwards knowing my decision-making will be better for future patients.
Again, some people might find this exhausting or annoying. For me though I think it’s a really great thing about our profession. I think it’s what keeps the curiosity and creativity going in PT.
3.) Keeps Me Moving & Thankful for My Body
I’m going to start this next one off by saying there’s absolutely nothing wrong with having a desk job, but it just wouldn’t be for me. Honestly one of the things that drove me to choose healthcare in the first place was I didn’t think I could be at a desk all day.
Do I have occasional days where I think it would be nice? Sure. When I really get to thinking about it though, the desk job sounds less and less enticing.
In last week’s post I explained how the deep appreciation I have for the body is partially what led me to choose PT in the first place. This third point harks back to that. Yes, some days I am very tired and think a desk would be much easier. But I’m thankful for doing a job that requires me to move my body every day. Knowing this has also motivated me to take care of my body even more. I know eating right, working out, and doing recovery will not only make me healthier, but also a better PT. To some extent it also makes the job easier!
On a similar note, working with people who can’t use their body how they want has only deepened my appreciation for my own body. I’m constantly reminded how important our mobility is to our everyday life and happiness. There’s a lot of things we take for granted in this world. There’s a lot of things I still take for granted. Thanks to me being a PT my body, my mobility, or my health isn’t one of them.
4.) The Meaningful Impact We Have
This one is a little self explanatory, however I think it does get lost on us a bit. We do this for a living so most days it feels like just another day at the office. However I think many of our patients would argue another day at the office for us makes all the difference to them. The impact we have on patients’ lives is another reason I love being a PT.
It ranges from big functional mobility such as teaching someone how to walk to smaller things like getting someone’s shoulder mobility back so they can brush their hair in the morning. It’s getting that patient independent enough in their transfers so they’re able to go home instead of a facility. It’s getting an athlete back on the field playing a sport they love. It’s keeping that patient with the neurological disorder independent and moving as long as possible to live their life to the fullest and continue making memories with their loved ones.
From the big things to small things, they make a big difference to our patients. It gets lost on me sometimes as well. Every now and then I’ll get a patient who profusely thanks me on discharge day. I almost feel awkward and don’t know what to say! Don’t get me wrong it is definitely nice to get a thank you but I also think “I was just doing my job”. You may have found yourself in similar situations.
Then in the moments I do take to reflect on my work, our clinic collectively, or our profession as a whole, I get it. The work we do is important. It’s extremely cliché and cringe of me to say, but we really do change lives. Now I don’t think we’re gods and goddesses or better than anyone else. But I do think we are an extremely unique and amazing profession because of the impact we make.
I hope you all have had a great PT month. I hope you’ve felt some good vibes about PT and the work you do. I hope you’ve gotten some from your employers, patients, or co-workers. If you haven’t, let me be the first to say “thank you”. Thank you for choosing this profession. Thank you for the work you do every day. PT isn’t an easy profession to get into, or stay in honestly, but the work you do matters. And it’s lucky to have you in it! However celebrating PT month looks to you I hope you do it. What do you love about being a PT? Drop it in the comments section! Have a great rest of the month and I’ll see you back here a couple weeks for a new blog post.
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