Components Of Post-Surgical Rehabilitation
What is Rehabilitation?
In medical terms, rehabilitation is the process of recovery following serious surgery. There are many types of rehabilitation because there are many types of major surgeries. In general, rehabilitation focuses on pain treatment, speech therapy, physical therapy, and occupational therapy, as noted by Medical News Today. The hospital may have rehabilitation procedures for particular surgeries, or your doctor might outline a rehabilitation plan for you. Often, the specialists from the different fields working in the same hospital will help you with your rehab plan. Other times, you may have to work with each specialist (PT, OT, ST, etc.) separately. Here is a brief, general overview of the components of rehabilitation.
Pain Treatment
Following surgery, pain treatment usually begins right away with doses of powerful pain killers. Your doctor will continue to authorize pain medication as he sees fit during your stay at the hospital. Many major surgeries cause pain that lingers for a long time, and your doctor will work with you develop a plan for your pain treatment. Sometimes this involves staying on medication for quite some time. Often, pain management plans will need to coincide with your OT and PT. For long-term pain, you may need to see a pain management specialist, but always consult your doctor and rehab team.
Speech Therapy
After some surgeries, your ability to speak may be impaired. Examples include some neurosurgeries and surgeries around the larynx. A speech therapist will assess any difficulties in speech, social communication, or swallowing. He or she will diagnose any speech disorders and develop a treatment plan for the patient. The specialist will work with you to improve articulation or improve functioning of oral motor muscles. Treatment techniques vary widely depending on the core problems. This article by the American Brain Tumor Association explains speech pathology and what treatment looks like for people recovering from brain tumor removal.
Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy
PT and OT can be similar since they both assign exercises. As noted in one source, "a physical therapist... treats the patient's actual impairment, while an occupational therapist... treats that impairment in action." For example, after joint replacement surgery, a PT may give the patient general shoulder exercises for overall mobility, while the OT may help the patient practice for something specific, like lifting the shoulders in order to put on a shirt. Basically, the PT helps improve the condition, and in the meantime, the OT helps the patient live with his or her condition. It is common to have PT and OT after strokes and replacement of joints like knees or hips. PTs and OTs give evaluations of the patient's problems and work with them to develop a treatment plan. You may work with them during a hospital stay (inpatient), or at a clinic (outpatient), or in some cases, in your home.
Closing
In summary, rehabilitation focuses on pain management, speech pathology, physical therapy, and occupational therapy. Depending on the surgery, you may need all, one, or a few of the aforementioned treatments. Some hospitals have special rehabilitation programs, and in other cases, your doctor will refer you to the right specialists. The author spends a lot of time in hospitals and has learned a good deal about rehabilitation, as well working briefly as OT assistant.
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