Rehabilitation doctors, also known as physiatrists, work to develop function in people with disabilities and help those who have suffered from injuries or illnesses. They specialize in pain medicine, pediatric rehabilitation, spinal cord injury rehabilitation, sports medicine, neuromuscular medicine, and hospice and palliative care. They work with other healthcare professionals to help patients regain maximum functionality. There are over 8,000 board-certified rehabilitation physicians in the US.
A rehabilitation doctor is also known as a physiatrist. Rehabilitation physicians are physicians who work to develop function in people with disabilities and to help those who have suffered from debilitating injuries or illnesses regain function. Rehabilitation doctors work with people who have suffered from strokes, spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and sports-related injuries.
Within the profession of rehabilitation physicians, there are several specialties. In the United States, six of these specialties are officially recognized. They include pain medicine, pediatric rehabilitation, spinal cord injury rehabilitation, sports medicine, neuromuscular medicine, and hospice and palliative care. Other specialties, not officially recognized, may include amputee rehabilitation, musculoskeletal medicine, traumatic brain injury rehabilitation, and cardiopulmonary rehabilitation. Electrodiagnostics is another unrecognized specialty in which the physician receives training to use electromyography as a diagnostic tool.
Rehabilitation physicians are often seen as the team leaders in groups of healthcare professionals who work to help a patient regain a productive lifestyle after an illness or injury. Depending on the disease, rehabilitation doctors may work with other doctors such as orthopedic surgeons or neurologists, as well as physical therapists, speech and occupational therapists, and social workers. The team’s goal is to help the patient regain the maximum possible functionality.
Rehab doctors use a variety of skills to help their patients. These include medications, exercises and orthotics, as well as training in the use of assistive devices and explaining how some activity modifications may be unavoidable. If the patient never regains full function, the team works to help the patient devise ways to meet the new challenges. The length of time someone receives treatment from a rehab doctor depends on a variety of factors, including whether the insurer is willing to continue to cover costs and how much progress the patient makes during therapy.
There are over 8,000 board-certified rehabilitation physicians in the United States. A board-certified physician has passed a written and oral exam from the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. For physicians interested in one of the rehabilitation medicine subspecialties, the ABPM&R has a reciprocity agreement that allows physicians to participate in specialty training courses and receive certification in either rehabilitation medicine or internal medicine, pediatrics, or neurology.
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