We’re transitioning into a new era of physical therapy, one where the therapist is in control of when they work, how much they work, and where they work. With Luna, therapists aren’t required to see 15 patients per day. Heavy caseloads often lead to burnout, potentially a subsequent decrease in the delivery of care, and diminished personal work satisfaction. Can the potential downsides of a traditional physical therapy practice be eliminated? With Luna, an on-demand physical therapy practice can be mutually beneficial for both therapists and patients. Here’s how!
#1 Increased Flexibility
Ann Kramer, a physical therapist for Luna, describes her dissatisfaction with decreased flexibility in a traditional clinic. “Not all clinics are like this, but many are pushing for increasing the amount of patients you see in a workday and decreasing the amount of time you have with each patient. Decreases in flexibility make providing the required amount of care, including rapport building which can better outcomes, really challenging. Sometimes I’d find myself bringing these stressors home with me and ruminating about how I could provide better care, even though I was not given the opportunity to do so. It all felt really unfair.”
Additionally, therapists feel they are increasingly unable to provide appropriate service to their patients. Ann continues, “Before I had my kids, I was a career woman, totally fine with working 40 hour work weeks. Then my kids came along and it became so much harder to be a mom and work full time. I’m not really sure how some people do it. With Luna, I’m so happy because I have a huge amount of flexibility and still get to do exactly what I love: physical therapy.”
#2 Better Work-Life Balance
Life is too precious to not work a job that meets your psychological needs, whether that's more time with your family or more time doing the activities you love. One benefit of a therapy delivery service is that it’s impossible to have a day that’s as busy as in a standard orthopedic clinic. Unless you want a 16-hour workday, driving between clients naturally caps your number of patient interactions to five to seven visits per day. Steve Stalzer, a physical therapist at Luna, summarizes how after almost burning out his work-life balance has changed for the better. “Luna saved me from burning out as a clinician! I get more one-on-one time with my patient and have flexibility in setting hours that work for me. I get to be my own boss without the hassle of opening up my own clinic.”
#3 More Functional Rehab for Patients
Home exercises and treatments become specifically tailored to each individual patient when you’re an on-demand physical therapist. How many times have you questioned whether something you and a patient worked on in the clinic would actually be possible at their home? What happens in the clinic doesn’t always translate well to what your clients have at their disposal in a home environment. By providing therapy in your patient’s house, you can ensure that your instructions have immediate relevance.
When you’re in the patient’s home, you can do exercises that pertain to the patient’s needs. You can assess the situation, see potential barriers in the home make recommendations on equipment, and design a program that is specific for the patient. Being in a patient’s home allows for more fine-tuned programming that can be specifically tailored to the patient’s needs.
#4 Increase Your Pay and Decrease your Costs
We’ve detailed in the past how working with a company like Luna can increase your earning potential. Palak Shah, a physical therapist at Luna, explains how you can make more money in less time as an on-demand physical therapist. “Another opportunity is to work as an on-demand therapist, or as needed. If you don’t want to do full-time, you don’t have to. You can do 1-2 extra visits during the day or on the weekends and add a few hundred dollars to your other job. You get paid more, work less, can work when you want, and can stop at your home during the day.” At Luna, you can work the number of hours you want, from 5 to 25 visits a week.
Luna can provide unique benefits compared to opening your own physical therapy clinic. Rent increases, overhead costs, and the costs of doing business are eliminated. Being an on-demand physical therapist with Luna can increase your earning potential and decrease your costs.
What makes physical therapy so unique is that you have so many options to choose from to create your optimal working experience.
