This week, I treated an amputee in the gym, 6 months post op. This young woman had been in a MVA and lost her leg. The accident was not her fault and instead of being bitter towards the other driver, she had a wonderful attitude and was very motivated for her rehab. Her recovery was going very well and she was progressing faster than expected. I know this might not solely be due to her attitude but I believe it played a very big part in her speedy recovery. From the other patients I had encountered in previous weeks, she was the most inspiring patient, always having a positive attitude even in bad circumstances.
I was very inspired by this patient and it made me feel encouraged in doing physiotherapy because she was so grateful for the input we were giving. I decided to share this encounter with everyone because it was so refreshing to see a patient that did not blame others (even though she of all people had the right to blame others) and was motivated and thankful for the rehab that she was given.
I think this experience was very beneficial to me because after treating her instead of feeling sorry for her, I felt like she had encouraged me and she had changed my perspective on life. The problems that I had were so insignificant compared to hers and yet she had a more optimistic attitude and managed to see the best in her situation. I hope to treat a lot more patient like her and to maybe make a change in my own attitude when encountering problems!!
Wow, I think it's fantastic that you had such an inspiring patient who had such a positive effect on you. Wouldn't it be nice if they were all like that? Unfortunately, I don't think it's often that we get patients like this. It's up to us as physio's to be the motivators and hopefully have the same inspirational effect on our patients and achieve the desired results! Good luck with that ;)
ReplyDeleteIts great to read of an example that highlights how we have as much to learn from our patients than they do from us. This is often underestimated although patients are people and we are lucky we are in a profession where we are exposed to talking to so many different people, everyday.
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