Hand Therapists bridge the gap from medical management of upper extremity conditions to successful recovery, allowing individuals to function normally in their daily lives. They provide non-operative interventions, preventative care and post-surgical rehabilitation for a wide variety of upper extremity disorders.
Outpatient Rehabilitation
When you're injured, even routine activities can be difficult. To help you recover fully, CHI Health Rehabilitation Care provides physical therapy at outpatient rehabilitation clinics throughout Omaha and the surrounding area. CHI Health Rehabiliation Care Therapists are medically trained, licensed professionals with expertise in all subspecialties of physical therapy, focusing on musculoskeletal dysfunction from injury, disease processes and/or post-surgical recovery. We also have on staff several physiatrists - doctors of physical medicine -- who specialize in diagnosing and treating patients with physical disabilities.
Therapy Services
Physical Therapy
Physical Therapists (PT) focus on the whole body and use various forms of exercise and manual techniques, often in conjunction with physical modalities such as heat, ice, ultrasound and electrical stimulation. A majority of our staff have specializations in many areas to accommodate patients’ specific needs.
Pain Management
While it’s natural to want to make hurt go away, easing pain is a more realistic expectation. Moving away from pain starts with identifying the cause and creating an individualized approach to finding relief.
In many cases, pain can be relieved with conservative treatment by a physical therapist, which can include massage, movement therapy, exercise and other techniques which tackle inflammation, stiffness and soreness while encouraging the body to produce natural pain-relieving chemicals.
Pain management specialists can also advise you on a variety of approaches to relieving and managing pain:
- Exercise - releases endorphins which block pain signals while improving mood
- Weight management - eases pain by reducing pressure on joints.
- Massage therapy - reduces stress and relieves muscle tension.
- Tai chi and yoga - combines physical strengthening with meditation practice.
- Acupuncture and dry needling - target pressure/trigger points to heal tissues and relieve pain.
- Biofeedback, meditation, mindfulness - increase relaxation and distract from the perception of pain.
- Smoking cessation - prevents receptor desensitization which intensifies pain perception.
- Alcohol moderation or elimination - improves sleep, which affects pain perception.
While medications may play a role in pain control, opioid overuse and abuse have changed how these pain medications are prescribed. In fact, the current medical recommendations are to not use opioids at all for people with chronic back pain and instead try alternative methods of pain control.
For that reason, it’s important to know there’s more than one way to ease your pain. Different things work for different types of pain. In most cases, the best approach is an individualized plan which will ultimately improves mobility, strength and comfort.
Occupational Therapy
Occupational Therapists (OT) help people across their lifespan to do the things they want and need to do through the therapeutic use of daily activities (occupations). Occupational Therapy practitioners promote health and prevent - or live better with - injury, illness, or disability.
Speech - Language Therapy
Speech Language Pathologists (SLP) work to prevent, assess, diagnose and treat the following disorders in children and adults.
- Speech disorders occur when a person has difficulty producing speech sounds correctly or fluently.
- Language disorders occur when a person has trouble understanding others or sharing thoughts, ideas, and feelings.
- Social communication disorders occur when a person has trouble with the social use of verbal and nonverbal communication.
- Cognitive-communication disorders include problems organizing thoughts, paying attention, remembering, planning, and/or problem-solving.
- Swallowing disorders are feeding and swallowing difficulties, which may follow an illness, surgery, stroke, or injury.
Specialty Programs
Using warm water exercises actually decreases the amount of stress on your joints, which decreases pain and stiffness. And because the water offers resistance in every direction, opposing muscles work equally. That means you’ll effectively develop muscular strength, endurance and joint flexibility.
Our CHI Health Outpatient Rehabilitation Clinics provide specialized care for young and adult athletes including:
- Community Outreach and Educational Programs
- Running, jumping and throwing evaluations
- Transitional Rehabilitation Programs into independent activities
This program offers comprehensive evaluations and individualized treatment plans for people suffering from impaired balance, vertigo and dizziness.
We develop individualized treatment programs that focus on strength, coordination, memory, and speech. Our goal is to promote recovery to the fullest potential and achieve maximum quality of life.
An interdisciplinary therapeutic approach with Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and Speech-Language Therapy. Therapists collaborate with physicians and neuropsychologists to develop an individualized treatment plan. Decisions regarding return to work or play are part of the overall goal to help each person return to his/her previous level of activity.
Manual physical therapy involves restoring mobility to stiff joints and reducing muscle tension in order to return the patient to more natural movement without pain.
We serve clients who have a medical condition(s) which limits participation in Mobility Related Activities of Daily Living. We work closely with rehab technology suppliers and vendors to evaluate and recommend mobility equipment to meet the needs of the individual.
Independent living skills foster self-reliance and confidence. The goal of the Driver Evaluation & Training Program. The program is to help individuals with a learning disability, a physical ailment as well as overall driver safety.
Physical therapy can be an effective treatment for prenatal or postpartum pain and dysfunction, post-gynecological surgery recovery, incontinence, pelvic floor weakness and pelvic pain. Specialized therapists use strengthening exercises, muscle stimulation and specialized equipment to achieve results quickly and safely.
Lymphedema is the abnormal swelling of an extremity or area due to a malfunctioning lymph system or removal or damage of lymph nodes or vessels. Management of this chronic and progressive disease is done through complete decongestive therapy (CDT), skin hygiene, manual lymphatic drainage (MLD), bandaging and compression and remedial exercise.
Specialists in pediatric therapy will help your child reach his or her potential. Physical and Occupation Therapy will evaluate and treat motor and sensory capabilities and create a unique program to address each child’s specific needs. Speech Language Therapy will focus on speech and language, feeding and swallowing difficulties and neurological conditions.
Occupational wellness combines wellness services, occupational medicine and rehabilitative services that work together to provide safe, productive work environments.
The Functional Capacity Evaluation (FCE) is a scientifically developed injury assessment that determines safe lifting abilities and workloads. Our physical therapists use state-of-the-art technology to compile a comprehensive, easy-to-read report based on functional abilities.
Integrating ergonomic principles can help reduce stress and eliminate potential problems associated with overuse of muscles, awkward posture and repetitive tasks most often caused by excessive prolonged physical stress. A trained ergonomist can evaluate your workplace and offer solutions in work design and training that help eliminate inefficient work patterns.
Physical therapists work with the patient to develop and implement an aggressive work conditioning rehabilitation program, which is designed to educate patients on the specific demands of their job, meet their functional needs and lower their risk of reinjury. The Work Conditioning Program uses on-site job analysis and total body reconditioning for:
- Balance and Stability
- Strength and Flexibility
- Cardiovascular Conditioning
- Simulated Work Movements
- Material Handling Activities
- Job Education and Injury Prevention