Referrals

Smart Rehab primarily serves the older adult population. There are many older adults that could benefit from physical therapy services but don’t receive services for a variety of reasons. Some of the most common reasons are:

They are not “homebound” and therefore believe they don’t qualify for services.
They can’t get to an outpatient clinic two to three times a week.
They find it physically taxing to travel to an outpatient clinic two to three times a week.

All of these reasons can be eliminated by using in-home physical therapy services. For the older adult population, these services are covered under Medicare Part B.

In order to identify candidates for in-home physical therapy, Smart Rehab defines how each of the following can be a referral partner.

Assisted/Independent Living Facilities

Many older adults residing in assisted/independent living facilities could benefit greatly from balance, gait training, strength and conditioning exercises, to improve or maintain their independence in that setting. We work closely with staff as well as family members to identify those who would benefit from physical therapy services.

In addition, we offer the following seminars and screenings for living facilities:

Smart Rehab Seminar:

We offer this to your staff and/or residents to explain our services and how a therapist can help improve the function and overall independence of older adults as they age. Many of the residents are not aware they can receive physical therapy services in the comfort of their home.

Balance and Fall Prevention Seminar:

We offer this to your staff and/or residents and their family members to explain the importance of balance in fall prevention. Many of the residents have decreased confidence in their mobility and are interested in learning ways to increase confidence and improve balance and safety which prevents future falls and subsequent injury.

Fall Risk Screening:

We offer a free fall risk screening for residents to identify those who could benefit from our therapy services. These can be set up on a regular basis (monthly, semi-monthly, annually) at your facility. Providing screenings for residents is a proactive way to work towards reducing the falls in your facility.

For residents who may be appropriate for our services, we will provide an initial free physical therapy screening. If the individual is appropriate for physical therapy treatment we will contact the individual’s physician to obtain an order for physical therapy.

Caregiver Agencies (Non-Medical Home Care)

Many of the clients of caregiver agencies are those older adults who are having difficulty with balance and gait. Their mobility and overall safety both in and outside the home has decreased. We work closely with the nurse case managers to identify those who would benefit from the physical therapy services we provide.

In addition, we will provide the following training:

Body Mechanics & Transfer Training:

We educate caregivers and family members on proper bed mobility and transfer techniques to optimize the safety of the patient and health of the caregiver. Good body mechanics are essential to protecting the individual assisting in repeated transfers.

Balance & Fall Prevention Seminar:

We offer this to your staff to explain the importance of balance in fall prevention. Many of the caregivers can relate to this topic and will be interested in learning some ways to assist their clients in order to prevent falls and to improve balance and safety. We will also educate them to identify those older adults who benefit from physical therapy services in the home.

If you feel a client of yours could benefit from therapy services, please contact us and we will reach out to the individual to schedule a free physical therapy screening. If the individual is appropriate for physical therapy treatment we will contact the individual’s physician to obtain an order for physical therapy.

Physicians

We work closely with physicians and their offices as an extension of the care they provide for their patients. Specifically, we work with those physicians that specialize in geriatrics or see a large Medicare population. These physicians typically have many patients who are having difficulty with balance and gait, suffering from frequent falls. For this population, it is easier and more functional to have physical therapy in their home since we can see the patient’s true limitations in their home environment. The goal of the patient is to remain in their home setting and our physical therapy is tailored specifically toward helping them reach this goal.

There are many doctors that can be good referral sources but here is a list of those we commonly work with:

Internal Medicine
Orthopedist
Podiatrist
Rheumatologist
Urologist

After receiving a prescription from the physician for a physical therapy evaluation and treatment, we contact the patient to schedule the initial evaluation and the subsequent treatment dates and times. At the initial evaluation and throughout the treatment, the physician is always informed of the progress of the patient.

If you have a patient who is appropriate for physical therapy in their home, please contact us to schedule therapy with your patient.

Home Health Agencies

Many patients are discharged from Home Health (Medicare A) because they are no longer homebound are still in need of physical therapy services. They do not realize they can be seen for outpatient physical therapy IN THEIR HOME at little or no cost to them because it is paid for under their Medicare B benefits. We work with therapists, nurses, and case managers to identify those older adults appropriate for continued physical therapy in the home. We are able to look into their benefits, as well as contact their physician for a referral for outpatient physical therapy to be performed in their home.

In order to refer one of your patients for in-home therapy please contact us.

Retirement Communities

Retirement communities typically cater to those over 55 years of age. Many times their residents could benefit from physical therapy for a number of age related problems or balance and gait disturbances. The goal of these residents is to remain independent and stay in their current living situation. We offer free fall screenings to your residents to identify those who could benefit from our therapy services. For this population, it is easier and more functional to have physical therapy in their home since we can see the patients true limitations in their home setting.

Senior Centers/Adult Day Cares

Many older adults attending these centers and their families appreciate that they are able to get out of the home during the day. These individuals could benefit from physical therapy to assure that they can be safe and mobile in order to continue attending. Smart Rehab will work closely with the staff to identify patients that could benefit from physical therapy. We conduct therapy at the center so that family members do not have to schedule therapy sessions outside of the time when the individual is at the center.

Family Members/Friends

Many times the spouse, child, neighbor or friend of the older adult have the closest vantage point to see the decline in overall function and may be unsure what to do about it. This decline can be due to a loss of balance, difficulty walking, and/or decrease in strength and endurance. Our therapists are available to discuss their concerns for their family member or friend. Together we then decide if they would benefit from physical therapy services in the home.

Please contact us and we will reach out to the individual to schedule a physical therapy evaluation. If physical therapy treatment is appropriate, we will then contact the individual’s physician to obtain an order for physical therapy.