How to Improve Patient Compliance During Therapy Sessions

Once you have suffered an injury or decided to have that elective surgery for a joint replacement, than you progress to a physical therapy program to start your rehabilitation. Your compliance with the rehabilitation program is what will determine your overall success. Compliance for some comes very easy. These individuals understand the importance of getting stronger and improving physically to either get back to work to regain their independence or both. For others this is not the case, this is where the rehabilitation professional needs to find out what they can do to ensure that compliance is attained.

In working in the home health field now for over 11 years, I find that patient compliance can be difficult in some cases. Compliance will depend on the patients attitude, motivation if any and, support they receive at home. Caregivers need to be involved in the care pf the patient. They should be impressed on the importance of the home exercise program for instance. Involving and educating the caregiver gives you as a therapist added support staff that will ensure the necessary work is getting done.

Having a caregiver keep a log of the activities completed with time and date will help in making the patient accountable for their own care. Rehabilitation has to be impressed upon everyone involved that it is a two way street. To be successful there has to be accountability for everyone.

Another skill that should be utilized by the rehabilitation professional is giving clear concise instructions on what should be done on therapy off days, along with a copy of the exercise program with written instructions on how to perform the exercises or other tasks involved. Clarity and simplicity regarding the program devised will help in patient understanding.

Handing someone an exercise program with 17 exercises and expecting the patient and caregiver to carry them out is unrealistic in the home health setting for instance. Introducing slowly, several exercises each session without getting too time consuming due to the large number of exercises will increase your chances of therapy compliance.

In physical therapy you as a therapist are considered educators. Educating the patient on why they have been issued the exercises and what they should experience if done properly and with diligence will help in patient understanding.

Rehabilitation professionals with experience learn how to read their patients instincts and desires. What motivates them for instance, than learning how to capitalize on the patients strengths is what helps in increasing the odds of compliance.

Compliance as a whole will differ in certain age groups, along with personality types in general.

Increasing the odds of compliance will be about making the patient accountable for their own rehab success or failures and, keeping the rehabilitation program clear and concise along with allowing the patient to help in designing some aspect of the program when appropriate helps in getting a more cooperative patient.

When the therapist and patient both can add input into the program along with the patients physical goals, than there is a better chance of overall compliance.