物理治疗师助理和人口老龄化

治疗、评估、预防保健和挑战

大多数人对物理治疗的看法包括从疾病或损伤中治愈. 虽然恢复和康复都是物理治疗师助理工作的重要组成部分, 积极帮助人们保持健康也是如此，尤其是对老龄化人口而言.

随着人们变老, 它们自然会失去力量, 流动性, 骨密度, 是什么让他们更容易跌倒, 受伤, 以及其他各种健康问题. 通过指导他们进行有组织的锻炼和日常活动, physical therapist assistants can help older adults maintain their 独立 and enjoy fulfilling lives well into their later years.

Let’s take a closer look at the numerous ways physical therapy can benefit seniors and the importance of physical therapist assistants in promoting healthy aging.

了解人口老龄化

人们的寿命更长了, 比以往更健康的生活, 这意味着世界老年人口预计将在未来几年大幅增长. 根据 世界卫生组织, 到2030年和2050年，六分之一的人口将达到或超过60岁, 60岁以上的人口预计将翻一番，达到20多亿.

尽管治疗和技术的进步提高了预期寿命和生活质量, 随着年龄的增长，老年人仍然需要更多的医疗护理. 有这么多的人即将步入老年, 预计未来几年对bbin大全/bbin白菜平台大全服务的需求将急剧上升.

随着人们年龄的增长, 他们通常会遇到关节炎等健康问题, 骨质疏松症, 心脏病, 糖尿病。, 中风, 也增加了跌倒或其他身体伤害的风险. Physical activity is a critical component of treating many of these age-related health challenges—or sometimes even preventing them entirely. Physical therapy is often a critical component of healthy aging because it encourages regular activity in older people who tend to live more sedentary lives.

物理治疗师助理在老年人口治疗中的作用

在训练期间, physical therapist assistants receive a well-rounded education that teaches them to help people of all ages become healthier through the power of movement. pta研究药理学, 解剖学, 应用运动学, 并了解各种不同疾病的治疗方法和治疗程序, 包括那些影响老年人的疾病.

物理治疗师助理在持牌物理治疗师的指导下工作, 并与他们密切合作，评估老年患者并实施适当的治疗计划. While there are limits to a PTA’s scope of practice in terms of diagnosing conditions and developing plans of care, 他们是许多PT诊所的重要贡献者. 物理治疗师助理通常比他们的指导治疗师花更多的时间和病人在一起, 他们的更新和观察可以在完善患者的治疗计划中发挥重要作用.

如何评估老年人的身体需求

对物理治疗患者的初步评估是整个过程中最关键的部分之一, as it establishes a baseline for each person’s current health and helps set realistic goals for each individual. 许多评估技术是适用的，无论病人的年龄, though older patients require some unique considerations to ensure treatment is safe and appropriately catered to their health circumstances.

对老年物理治疗患者最常用的评估包括:

• 认知与心理状态 -除了筛查痴呆症和测量患者的记忆水平之外, 这有助于识别老年人的抑郁症或其他常见的心理健康问题.
• 功能的移动 -测量老年病人的平衡, 步态, and how long it takes them to rise from a seated or lying position helps therapists identify issues that can be corrected in therapy.
• 日常活动的独立性 -确定老年患者对日常任务(如进食)的熟练程度, 洗澡, 沙拉酱, 或者准备食物有助于设定现实的目标来提高他们的生活质量.

物理治疗(和一般的bbin大全/bbin白菜平台大全)的整体方法对任何病人都有好处, but especially senior patients who are more likely to experience multiple health conditions that impact one another. 通过全面评估老年患者，了解他们的身体和情感需求, physical therapy providers can deliver more effective treatments and provide better outcomes in collaboration with the rest of a patient’s healthcare team.

如何制定量身定制的治疗计划

每个病人的个人情况决定了成功的治疗对他们来说是什么样的, 物理治疗的早期阶段包括为他们的持续进步设定目标和基准. 制定治疗计划的责任属于物理治疗师的执业范围, though they often rely on physical therapist assistants for help with patient assessments that inform the prescribed program.

Setting realistic goals for older patients gives physical therapists a way to track how well their treatment plan is working, 让病人继续接受治疗. 在家锻炼通常是他们继续进步的重要组成部分, and motivating senior patients to stick with their activity routine can make a major difference in both the short and long term.

保持身体活动有助于老年人保持他们的活动能力, 独立, 更广泛地说, 他们的尊严. 身体健康与精神和情感健康密切相关, and a carefully crafted physical therapy routine can benefit all of the above as people experience the natural effects of getting older.

监测进度和调整计划

The prescribed treatment plan based on a patient’s initial assessment is considered a starting point rather than a final solution. 随着治疗的进展, 物理治疗师和pta评估病人的进展和治疗计划的效果. Treatment plans are frequently adjusted throughout the course of physical therapy based on how the patient responds and any challenges they experience along the way.

修改治疗计划是有执照的物理治疗师的责任, 但物理治疗师助理在这个过程中做出了重要贡献. 通过病人访谈和客观测量相结合, pta收集活动范围的数据, 患者疼痛程度, 还有其他因素. 与他们的指导治疗师合作, 这些数据点可以用来微调病人的治疗计划. 例如, 如果某项运动引起病人不适或焦虑, 通常可以用一种不同的动作来代替相同的目标.

实施物理治疗干预

物理治疗师助理在老年患者中治疗广泛的健康问题. 在治疗老年人时, pta通常侧重于改善活动能力和平衡的治疗, 或者那些减轻慢性疾病引起的疼痛的药物. 常用的治疗方法包括有针对性的锻炼和日常活动, 手工疗法，比如拉伸, 按摩, 或者联合动员, 还有其他方式，比如冰敷或热敷, 超声波, 或者电刺激.

与老年人一起工作的私人助理通常也会培训他们的病人使用辅助设备, 可以是任何东西，从标准的助行器和轮椅到先进的机器人假肢. 随着医疗技术在未来几年的不断进步, physical therapist assistants are likely to encounter an increasing number of exciting new devices that can drastically improve their senior patients’ quality of life.

预防保健和教育的重要性

因为老年人更容易受伤, physical therapist assistants who work with the aging population often teach their patients about risk management and injury prevention. 跌倒是老年人受伤的最常见原因之一, and it’s common for PTAs who work with geriatric patients to guide them through activity routines designed specifically to reduce their risk of a potentially harmful incident.

Physical therapist assistants also educate their older patients on the overall importance and benefits of physical activity. 随着人们变老, those who stay physically and mentally active are generally more resistant to the natural effects of aging. (随着年龄的增长，“要么使用，要么失去”这句话当然适用于bbin宝盈娱乐客户端下载的身体和思想!正因为如此, physical therapy for seniors often includes exercises to promote whole-body wellness and lower the risk of various age-related health concerns.

治疗老年患者的挑战

Providing physical therapy treatment to older adults comes with some unique challenges and considerations, 无论是职业上还是道德上. 因为老年患者的平衡能力和活动能力可能有限, administering treatments (or just moving around the clinic) requires extra care and attention beyond what most other patients normally require. 而且由于认知能力下降，一些老年患者的决策能力可能会下降, 对于物理治疗提供者来说，作为患者整体健康的倡导者是至关重要的.

作为他们教育的一部分, 理疗师助理学习安全知识, 法律, 以及为老年患者提供治疗的伦理考虑. 这包括如何避免年龄歧视行为的培训, 以及如何与老年患者沟通, 他们的照顾者, 以及他们医疗团队的其他成员.

在bbin大全/bbin白菜平台大全开始你的物理治疗生涯

许多物理治疗师助理发现，与老年患者一起工作特别值得. 他们有很多知识和故事可以分享，帮助人们优雅地变老是令人满意的. 许多健康人认为理所当然的事情——比如爬楼梯, 准备饭菜, 或者洗澡——对老年人来说是一项真正的挑战, and a dedicated physical therapist assistant can make a major impact on older adults’ daily standard of living.

如果你想做理疗师助理的话, 你要选择一个培训项目，让你准备好与所有类型的患者群体一起工作, 包括老年人. 的认证 bbin大全/bbin白菜平台大全的物理治疗师助理项目 教你的治疗和沟通技巧，你需要改变人们的生活变得更好. 你将从经验丰富的物理治疗专家那里学习, 完成有监督的临床工作，在你开始新的职业生涯时建立信心.

想了解更多关于作为PTA治疗老年患者的知识? 查看bbin宝盈娱乐客户端下载的深度指南 如何成为一名老年护理物理治疗师助理. 或者，如果你对教师教师的其他职业选择感到好奇，你可以浏览bbin宝盈娱乐客户端下载的列表 顶级理疗师助理工作.