Clinical Pathways

One year ago, THE pt GROUP incorporated the utilization of clinical pathways into its progressive treatment approach. Clinical pathways are protocols developed by diagnostic category that serve as guides for the ideal progression of clients through the process of their treatment. To date all of THE pt GROUP office locations have been successful in using the guidelines with 81.5 percent of the client population falling within the projected number of visits per diagnoses. The most frequently utilized clinical pathway diagnoses identified for this practice include:

• cervical strain
• cervical radiculitis
• low back pain/lumbar strain
• lumbar radiculitis
• shoulder impingement
• tendinitis/epicondylitis
• medial/lateral meniscal tears
• plantar fasciitis

At THE pt GROUP we emphasize the importance of individualizing each client's treatment program. The clinical pathway, however, ensures that the treatment process is one of progression. The treatment goals for the physical therapist as well as the client are continually monitored and addressed on a regular basis. If complications arise during the course of treatment they are identified promptly and effective solutions are instituted. Our ultimate goal, a critical component of THE pt GROUP mission, is to provide the highest quality of care in the most cost-efficient manner with an emphasis on achieving both client specific and physical therapy specific goals for each individual.

The physical therapists at THE pt GROUP now utilize a system of client specific functional goal limitations. This system is comprised of a combination of the physical therapists and client specific limitations by diagnosis. We recognize that the client's perception of his/her functional level is an essential component of the outcomes process. The degree of limitation varies from a client with a whiplash injury who experiences difficulty with driving to a client with a total knee replacement who experiences difficulty ascending and descending stairs. There is continual emphasis placed on the importance of client participation throughout the treatment course. Our 1997 statistics demonstrated that clients with whiplash injuries achieved 88 percent of their functional goals on average in 9.9 visits.

The quality of care is an essential aspect in negotiations regarding products and health care providers. The latest trends in healthcare are driving the selection of providers in the value/quality of their products. Outcomes may be equated with quality. THE pt GROUP recognizes the primary purpose of outcomes as the importance of care. We feel that with our implementation of clinical pathways and functional outcome studies the value of our high quality care in a cost-effective manner will be complemented by measurable excellent clinical outcomes. Getting our clients better subjectively, objectively and functionally is our ultimate aim.

The Outcomes Process

At THE pt GROUP we view our clients' functional outcomes as an essential component of the recovery process. With the external forces impacting the delivery of healthcare generally providers who deliver those services are increasingly accountable to managed care organizations and other insurance carriers resulting in the necessity to collect outcomes data. We acknowledge the importance of outcomes data collection and view it as an ongoing process to effectively monitor the clinical results "outcomes" achieved by therapists across our practice.