Clinical Kit 23-4-2015 What's Your Paradise?

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Perception, Perspective, Passion and Paradise - How do they relate?

This thought started after assessing a client who had just moved to Esperance, three months post an ACL reconstruction, toe walking, having had no rehab and with a grand total of 20 - 60 degrees ROM. Being in her early 20s, unemployed and in constant pain this wasn’t turning out how she had imagined. She was bitter with the surgeon and annoyed with the system. = Perception.

After examination and scoring her Hospital Anxiety and Depression (both > 11), Orebro MSK Questionnaire (> unlikely to return to work) and explaining where at 12 weeks the average person is functionally at (lots of tears), I summarized she was young, graft intact and strong (follow-up MRI), commencing rehabilitation and that the WC system had paid for her surgery and was paying for her wages, rehabilitation and assist her back to work. I explained she was fortunate = Perspective.

She returned two days later to commence rehabilitation. She was staggered that with her eyes closed she couldn’t centre her body when standing, amazed that all her leg muscles were sore to touch even though she had been ‘doing nothing’, and that she held her breath, when asked to move her knee voluntarily. Following some hands on treatment, finding her physical centre & normalizing movement, lots of explanations about emotions and pain, hydro and home exercises she was hooked on getting better = Passion.

And what about Paradise? Well I think that you create your own paradise. It is internal and influenced upon the other three. I hear that a lot of young physios leave our profession and that retention of our experienced physios is also an issue. Why?

My Perspective is that we have been given the skills to assist people towards better health. We exist in an active profession, with a long association of constant internal improvement. Our scope of practice is extremely broad & expanding, allowing for individual choice, decisions, choice of direction and amazing creativity.

My Perception is that I am fortunate to be involved in daily clinical practice, ongoing research activities, running a business, creating and delivering professional development and sharing with other professionals who inspire me to understand more about how the human body works.

My Paradise is getting to work. For me it comes back to my clients and my skills. I learn from clients what I don’t know. Through this awareness I can assist more clients if I have a better skill set. This is why professional development is paramount to me; be it directly through client interaction, mentoring, attending courses or reading and researching. The mountains we see now are the hills of our future, if we journey forward. Mountains that I can see ahead include; human nutrition, autonomic nervous system activation, fascia contribution, and understanding human perception.

Find & follow your passion and I am sure you will have found your paradise.

All the best,

Doug Cary FACP
Specialist Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist (awarded by Australian College of Physiotherapy, 2009)
PhD Candidate Curtin University
Clinical Director AAP Education

email: doug@aapeducation.com.au

ph/fx: 08 90715055

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