Physiotherapy focuses on human function and movement and ways of optimising these. The term ‘physiotherapy’ is often used as an umbrella term for the various treatments and techniques that physiotherapists can use.
- What is physiotherapy?
- Who provides physiotherapy?
- What is the evidence for physiotherapy?
- What can I expect?
- Where to get physiotherapy?
- More information
What is physiotherapy?
Physiotherapy aims to optimise human movement and function. You can find physiotherapists working in various disciplines, from sports injuries to respiratory training and from back pain to stroke rehabilitation. In the context of back pain, the term physiotherapy is often used for any treatment provided by a physiotherapist while actually a physiotherapist can use a range of different treatments and techniques. Examples of modalities that physiotherapists can use to treat back pain include exercise, massage, manual therapy, advice, electrotherapy, hydrotherapy, acupuncture etc.
Who provides physiotherapy?
Physiotherapy is provided by physiotherapists (sometimes called physical therapists). In the UK, all physiotherapists have to be registered with the Health Professions Council (HPC). You can check whether your physiotherapist is registered on http://www.hpc-uk.org/
Physiotherapy is available from the NHS and privately. To access a NHS physiotherapist you will need a referral from your GP although in some areas you can go directly to a physiotherapist (self-referral).
Many of the treatments that physiotherapists use, can also be provided by other professions, for example manual therapy and massage can also be provided by osteopaths and/or chiropractors.
What is the evidence for physiotherapy?
As stated above, the term ‘physiotherapy’ is an umbrella term for many different treatments and techniques. The most commonly used treatments that physiotherapist can use include manual therapy and exercise. There is good evidence that these treatments are effective for the treating back pain, especially when the pain has lasted for a number of weeks. Exercise is an important element of most back pain programmes and a physiotherapist can advise you what exercise to do. There is also some evidence to support the use of massage and acupuncture for the treatment of back pain, although research in this area is ongoing to really find out when these treatments should be used.
What can I expect?
A first session with a physiotherapist is often spend on taking your medical case history, an assessment which may include several tests and agreeing a plan for your treatment programme. Most treatment programmes exist of multiple sessions over a number of weeks. During these sessions your physiotherapist may use one or more of the treatments and techniques that he or she is trained in.
In many cases, your physiotherapist will also ask you to do some exercises at home on the days that you don’t have a physiotherapy appointment.
Where to get physiotherapy?
You can access physiotherapy services on the NHS or privately. In most areas you need a referral from your GP before you can see a NHS physiotherapist although in some areas they have started self-referral projects whereby you can access physiotherapy without a referral.
To find a physiotherapist in private practice, you can search BackCare’s database of Professional members.
More information
www.csp.org.uk The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (Professional body for physiotherapists in the UK)
www.hpc-uk.org Health Professions Council (Regulatory body for physiotherapists in the UK)