By Julie Duck

When your patients become involved in their own rehabilitative care, you have a win-win scenario. This is because at-home rehabilitation encourages patient compliance, as well as helps them to see how crucial it is that they be present in their treatment. Nowhere is this more important than with rehabilitation from injury. Right now, giving your patients the ability to continue rehabilitating from the comfort of home is a smart idea. This does not mean that you won’t play an essential role in the patient’s recovery. Rather, it means that you serve as their guide for rehabilitation, treating them in your office, showing the patients how to help themselves at home, and providing the inexpensive, yet effective, products they need to do so.

Everyday rehab
Realistically, a patient in need of rehabilitation cannot come in for an adjustment every single day. They can, however, incorporate home rehab exercises into their daily lives. This can positively impact the days when they do come in for an adjustment, and help you to eliminate unnecessary, expensive in-office rehab equipment. Instead, by offering your patients cost-effective at-home rehab solutions, you not only put them in charge of their rehabilitation and wellness, but allow yourself to be the go-to source for the equipment that the patient needs.

What do your patients need to get the job done at home? There are several inexpensive home rehab products on the market, some of which can be found at stores such as Wal-Mart or Sport Chalet. Instead, why not offer similar – and better quality - products through your office? This way, your patients can go home with the equipment they need without having to stop at the shop to purchase it. It is also a nice revenue booster to provide such equipment yourself, rather than let the sporting goods store down the street take all the credit.

Some of the products to consider offering patients include:

• Exercise Balls –

Great for strengthening the back and abdominal muscles, as well as promoting balance, exercise balls come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and are an easy, cost-effective way to provide patients with a key at-home rehab tool.

• Bands and Tubing – Another good way for you to give patients what they need for in-home rehab are budget-friendly bands and tubing, which are ideal for resistance training.

• Balance boards - There are many kinds of balance boards available, each allowing your patients to perform balance and stability exercises from the comfort of home.

• Core training equipment – Strength at the center of the body contributes to overall wellness. Equipment such as balls, bells and wobble chairs can help you to ensure that patients build the core strength they need for optimal recovery.

• Software – Both you and your patients can benefit from exercise software. Many programs allow you to customize an at-home exercise program by selecting from hundreds of exercises. You can then print handouts for the patient, and send them on their way toward recovery, as well as adjust the intensity of each exercise to address patient progress.

The real benefit of at-home rehab
At-home rehab increases patient wellness and can also boost your profit margins. Simply put, a patient who takes an active role in their wellness will likely recover more quickly from injury. You may wonder if this will lead to a decrease in the volume of patients seen. Actually, you may see an increase in patient volume because your rehab patients are becoming better more rapidly, and are then able to refer new patients to you. Add this to the equipment that you conveniently offer to your patients to perform in-house rehab, and you further add to your bottom line - definitely a win-win.

Julie Duck is the former editor of Chiropractic Products and a healthcare writer with more than 16 years of experience. She can be reached by e-mail at juliechiro@cox.net