has anyone remembered the large part physiotherapists have played in this virus?

[CrowdedHouseinQuarantine]

it is not all about the nurses and doctors.
i fear they have been forgotten yet they are exceedingly important, as are speech therapists.

[Pomegranatepompom]

@kingaroo cancers services didn't stop where I work.
I think people working in itu do deserve recognition, it was horrendous for them. Obviously other people worked in difficult circumstances too.

[TheGreatWave]

king that sounds incredibly frustrating, and I am sorry that you are being even more let down by the services. There is a massive postcode lottery in terms of services as it is, and there seems to be even less equability in how services are staffed and delivered at the moment.

Have you spoken to anyone other than your usual therapists, such as the lead OT / PT etc

[KingaRoo]

No because I have no way of contacting them. They aren't in the office so don't answer phone or email. If DD's physio can't get in touch with anyone in OT parents have zero chance!

[Sowhatywhaty]

Also the dietitians! Supporting patiients on ITU and through recovery.

[Neolara]

Why are some physios and OTs not allowed to work? Have they been furloughed? Why aren't they able to offer video consultations?

[TheGreatWave]

There are some concerns around GDPR and effectiveness, but afaik there has not been any national advice to not do remote assessments / catch ups.

I am not NHS so not 100% clear of their policy but what I have read so far has not led me to believe that they are not permitted.

As I said originally some physio and OT's (amongst many NHS staff) have been redeployed into other teams, but NHS can't be furloughed - they may be shielding though.

[CrowdedHouseinQuarantine]

Yes that of course should be respiratory physios

[pandafunfactory]

The physios I've been aware of have moaned like hell. Not as much as the nurses but close. The group that's said nowt- the cleaners. And the physiologists and the doctors.
Pharmacists haven't been too vocal but portering and administrative staff were a never ending nightmare- except for Those who normally worked actually in areas now Covid laden. They had to be restrained from being with their team.

It's a funny old world.

[jellybeanz1212]

Don't forget us cleaners pats self on back

[TheGreatWave]

jelly Big pat from me too,

Obviously with a mop as I can't get any closer.

[jellybeanz1212]

@TheGreatWave with a clean mop head on of course!

[PickAChew]

Social workers are working. Even taking new referrals. I suspect they're pretty busy with all the kids who have lost much needed support.

[AbcdAbcdXyz]

@Micah
I'm very grateful to the police.

I agree with you and @BananaPop2020, the current sentiment is frightening.

I'm a DV survivor. Women in DV situations often rely on the police but the way things are going I wouldn't be surprised if all the decent ones left the job.They don't seem supported (to say the least) by the media.

I hope they know some of us public are grateful.

[SabrinaTheTeenageBitch]

@kingaroo My daughter has cerebral palsy and has had zero physio input since before lockdown. Not even a phonecall

[Fluffymulletstyle]

Physios have a huge part to play in the sickest patients in intensive care and rehabilitation afterwards of patients with covid.

I agree non covid services have taken a hit(same across all the nhs services) as staff have been redeployed or trusts have been strict in video calls. Some have been bending over backwards to rework services to make them as good as they can be in the current situation.

I do think this need for everyone to be individually praised is a bit annoying. If someone has done a good job, tell then directly.

We are all cogs on a machine playing a small part of something bigger. That's not just the nhs but society too.

[NeurotrashWarrior]

Yes! Neighbour is one. Very valuable and has been working more than before. She's ace ❤️

[MinnieMousse]

I did see a report on the news about how essential physiotherapy is to the recovery of many Covid-19 patients. There are so many ongoing health-related problems. This is a sector that is going to need increased funding to manage all the Covid-related issues as well as try to catch up with existing patients

[Littlebelina]

I agree op, I didn't really appreciate how broad a profession physiotherapy was until we were in PICU with dd1 and she needed respiratory physio. I imagine they've been incredibly busy during this and I think in general people don't realise the vast range of skills/jobs involved in clinical care in the NHS.

It was a nice thread to start even if it hasn't gone as you might have hoped

[BillieEilish]

Non Covid related, but I had NO idea how vital physios were.

Until I was in ICU for 6 weeks.

If it wasn't for my rehab physio I would not be able to walk or stand or use my arms or even get out of bed on my own or have a shower, or do anything. There were a miracle for me. They gave me back my life.

I am not sure how many people realise how absolutely vital they are @CrowdedHouseinQuarantine

If you survive you also need to be able to live. They enable you to live.

[CrowdedHouseinQuarantine]

@Littlebelina

I agree op, I didn't really appreciate how broad a profession physiotherapy was until we were in PICU with dd1 and she needed respiratory physio. I imagine they've been incredibly busy during this and I think in general people don't realise the vast range of skills/jobs involved in clinical care in the NHS.

It was a nice thread to start even if it hasn't gone as you might have hoped

Thanks
the threads quite often veer off in other directions.
and am glad just to get one or two agreements

[ScribblyGum]

Thanks for trying OP. I’m a physio and I do think that the pandemic has brought the essential skills that respiratory physio brings to ICU/acute care into the spotlight. It’s a speciality of physio that is not widely known or understood.
Michael Rosen has been very vocal in his praise of physios as part of the NHS team that supported him through his long hospital stay with Covid, and ultimate discharge home.
We allied health professionals don’t expect special praise but it’s nice when we do get some public recognition of the part that many of us have played in the response to the pandemic.
I’m a community physio and am still seeing acutely unwell patients at home, working hard on keeping them out of hospital.
It makes me very sad and frustrated to hear those on the thread who have had their therapy cancelled but in addition have had no contact from their NHS therapists. That’s really terrible 🙁

[EarlGreywithLemon]

I agree OP. Physios are generally under appreciated until you need one (luckily for me it was for something comparatively minor - a knee operation, and women’s physio after birth injuries). But even more so now. There’s a mammoth task ahead for respiratory physios after Covid, and physio provision has already been cut to the bone in the NHS. There was an article recently about the amount of lung injuries they are expecting to have to treat:
www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-53065340

[EarlGreywithLemon]

And thank you for your work @ScribblyGum! I had so much respect for the work I saw my physios do, I wished I’d trained as one.

[PinkPupZ]

I work in a therapy team physio/OT. I don't know any working from home. Most have been redeployed to acute care. Others are in the community.

[iwishiwasatglasto]

I'm a community OT. We've been doing face to face visits throughout, although we've obviously cut down on non-urgent ones to keep clients safe. Where we can, we use video calls.

Our team has been working non-stop to support hospital discharge, of both Covid positive and negative clients.
The stress levels have been ridiculous as our management is awful, and info on how we should be working changes all the bloody time.

In the early days, we didn't have adequate PPE. We were told we could only wear it if our clients had a positive diagnosis or were symptomatic. I felt like a walking biological weapon.

Our MSK physios were redeployed to ICU, so clearly weren't available to do their normal work.

I think paeds physios were redeployed to the wards.

So please understand that if you had a bad experience with services that seem to have closed down, that is most certainly not the case everywhere.

And physios, OTs and SLTs have a huge role to play in long term COVID rehab.