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Dear WWSPT Patients,
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Healing, Function, Recovery, Health
Over the weekend, my WWSPT colleagues and I received our 2nd Moderna #COVIDVaccine shot. We received our first shot 28 days earlier in the month through Central Bucks Family Practice. Central Bucks Family Practice has taken the charge to vaccinate the community’s health care workers. I wanted to just take a moment to shout out those nurses and doctors for stepping up in a huge way to help the community.
With the coronavirus being over a year old and vaccines coming to age this year with many more to come, I understand people’s hesitation about getting the vaccine and the potential side effects. While there are many unknowns, we must get this virus under control; the vaccine will help get us back to a normal state.
I personally got it to protect myself but also my patients and loved ones. I go to work and see people from all walks of life who come into the clinic every day. While I wear a mask all day and wash my hands to the point my hands are constantly dried and cracked, there is still a little voice in my head saying “what if I am a carrier and not displaying symptoms?” Getting the vaccine provides a huge relief for me. Knowing I am less of an exposure risk to my patients, friends, and family is worth the 24-hour side effects I got.
After the first shot, I could not move my arm out because it was so sore. As expected, there were more side effects I experienced with the second dose. Not only did I have soreness in my arm again, but I had the chills, a mild fever, and felt aches throughout my body. The symptoms I experienced were very mild and only lasted about 24 hours. That was just what I felt. Some of my colleagues felt no symptoms after their second shot!
Getting the vaccine does not mean the rules and guidelines don’t apply to me anymore. I will continue to be diligent in wearing my mask, staying 6 feet away from people, and wash my hands to be at the lowest exposure risk possible. I encourage that if your doctor recommends the vaccine to you, do not hesitate to get it! We all need to continue to wear our masks, wash our hands, and get the vaccines when available to combat this virus. I know we are not out of the woods yet, but with the vaccine, I see a clearing in the distance.
Dr. Amanda Nguyen, PT, DPT,
WWS Physical Therapy and Vestibular Rehabilitation
Doylestown PA.
Since the #COVID19 #Pandemic began, life has certainly changed. One major adjustment for our patients is the daily use of #masks when leaving their homes. Masks are necessary to keep each other healthy and mitigate risk during COVID-19, but individuals with pre-existing balance issues need to be aware of how they may further impact their #stability. When individuals struggle with #balance, especially due to #VestibularDisorders, they rely heavily on their vision to help them navigate their environment. Having a mask on can impede peripheral vision and our ability to quickly scan the area around our feet. If you or a loved one has a history of falls, make sure they are taking the appropriate measures to increase their safety including using an assistive device, avoiding trip hazards, and consider scheduling them for a #Balance tune-up with one of our vestibular specialists at #WWSPT!
Another issue we have discovered is that many of our senior citizens with varying degrees of hearing loss watch the mouths of those they speak with. You may find yourself or a family member asking “What?” a lot more often. If you have hearing aids, make sure you are wearing them especially when leaving the home since you can no longer read lips. Having diminished hearing does decrease our balance and can predispose one to falls. If you have a family member that has hearing loss, make sure you are speaking loudly and make eye contact with them when you speak so they know you are talking. Also, make sure that the other senses can be optimally used, i.e. no walking in the dark or dim lighting, use your assistive device, tidy up around your environment to avoid tripping, and have that balance issue assessed at our practice.
Be proactive about your #health and #safety and we welcome you at our practice for a thorough #BalanceandGaitAssessment! You’d much rather treat a balance dysfunction before it turns into a fall or a more serious consequence of falling. Contact us to schedule an appointment.
Dr. Jenna Mclane
WWS Physical Therapy & Vestibular Rehabilitation
This is my new morning ritual during the COVID-19 pandemic — I drive to my office (I am still considered essential) and park (street parking has been wonderfully available). I don my well-worn surgical mask and walk into WWSPT where I undergo symptom screening and a temperature check. Then, I promptly wash my hands and get my computer ready for my patients for the day. All-day long I wear the mask and wash my hands frequently, all this I to prevent the spread of any infection.
Likewise, when I go to the grocery store and the hardware store, I sport my mask. If I jog or walk, I have it with me, just in case I encounter others on the empty routes I usually choose. I cannot, however, exercise for long within its confines, so when outside for a walk I don’t wear my mask but have it with me. Overall, it is a small inconvenience.
A brief evidence review for the use of face masks while in public provides some useful insights as well as underscores the limits of our knowledge.[1] Despite the high frequency of respiratory virus infection across humankind and the low cost of masks, there is a dearth of good studies on face mask use (this is in some ways a commentary on our collective priorities). From five systematic reviews that have been published and two pre-print systematic reviews, one can glean the following:
Justifications for not wearing a mask in public include the limited assessments of effectiveness, the likelihood that they are not worn properly or consistently, the possibility that wearers may feel protected and avoid other public health interventions, and the need to reserve masks for healthcare workers. I wear my mask to protect my self and my patients so I can feel that I can safely provide physical therapy care. I believe it is a simple but again sometimes inconvenient this I can do.
In this review, the authors invoke the precautionary principle in approaching an issue of potential harm when scientific knowledge is lacking. In other words, when it comes to using a simple and cheap intervention that may be effective, they suggest wearing a face mask in public.
Given the thinness of the evidence and my penchant for an evidenced-based approach, why have I adopted a new ritual? I think that there are actually three reasons. First, I do so out of respect for, and in solidarity with my front-line colleagues who depend on PPE for their safety and that of their families. Second, when out and about in my small town, I see myself as a role model for good social behavior. Finally, like the authors, I believe in the precautionary principle when it comes to this strange and frightening virus. What do I have to lose?
Wendy Webb Schoenewald. PT, OCS
In addition to the directives of Social Distancing, good Hygiene, Hand Washing, and wearing Gloves, Governor Tom Wolf, PA., announced yesterday that he wants residents to wear a nonmedical or homemade mask when they leave their homes to:
There is another important consideration … to emphasize that you need to keep your hands and mouth clean so you need to not touch the mask when you take it off … touch just the ties or the bands so you do not contaminate the mask itself.
Homemade masks limit the spread of infectious droplets in the air by containing coughs and sneezes.
When a homemade mask can’t be acquired a scarf or bandana can be utilized. By implementing community use of this homemade fabric or cloth masks, everyone will have a higher degree of protection from this virus.
Remember: “My mask protects you, your mask protects me.”
Wendy W. Schoenewald, PT, OCS
WWS Physical Therapy & Vestibular Rehabilitation
**Information source Gov Tom Wolf, PA, news conferences.
We strive to provide an environment of recovery and healing for our clients, to allow them to advance their health and return to function, recreation or sports. It is our belief that Physical Therapy is the initial link in the healthcare system for Musculoskeletal and Balance related issues and we are the true experts on exercise. We look forward to a long term relationship with our patients and their families over their life span and hope to become their practitioner of choice for acute musculoskeletal issues, neuromuscular issues as well as reoccurring events limiting their Wellness. We want to be a part of our patients Healthy living and Healthy aging.