Apps PTs Can Recommend to Patients
8/2/2022
By Mike Severo, PT
Looking for apps that will help your PT patients?
There are countless stretches and exercises that you might prescribe to your patients to help them improve their condition. Not that long ago, we were providing patients with stick figure, making copies of VH1 cards or giving out generic pamphlets with pictures and explanations. It would then be up to your patients to interpret our drawings and do them as prescribed—and there was no guarantee that they did them correctly, or even at all.
It's time to make the leap to app technology. By recommending certain apps to your patients, you can save yourself time and help ensure your patience adhere to their home program. There are many Apps to choose from, but the following are three apps that can help your practice, as well as your patients:
1. PT Timer
(iOS)
The PT Timer app lets you share the exercises you want your patients to do through the app, and it will remind them when it's time to do them. The app also comes with a verbal cue feature that will guide patients through each exercise so that they don't have to stop and look at their phones. The app also helps patients track their time and count their repetitions, thereby making it easy for both you and your patients to monitor their progress.
2. PT Pal Pro
(iOS and Android)
PT Pal Pro can integrate with your electronic health record system. As a result, you can send therapy advice, treatment plans, and even appointment reminders to your patients through their phones. The app also asks patients what their pain level was like for each exercise and how difficult it was for them to complete. Using this information will make it easier to monitor their progress and adjust their treatment plans as needed.
3. MedBridge Go
(iOS and Android)
MedBridge Go is another app that allows you to send treatment plans to your patients. Patients can also use the app to set automated daily or weekly reminders to do their exercises as well as to track their overall progress. There's also a timer to make it easy for patients to do their exercises as prescribed. What makes the app particularly useful is that it lets patients loop demonstrations of the exercises they need to do to ensure that they do them correctly.
4. Physera
(iOS and Android)
Using physical therapy apps like these can make life much easier for both you and your patients. These apps help ensure that your patients are getting the information they need and that they are not only adhering to your treatment plan but doing their exercises correctly. Also, PT apps make it easier to monitor patient progress and to adjust their treatment plan as needed, thereby helping to ensure a more successful (and faster) recovery.