Anja Bliss

03 March 2024

Journal 3

Dr. Grossnickle

These past few weeks have been moving very quickly for me. As time dwindles down to

graduation. With so many pre-graduation paperwork tasks to complete, I feel as though the next

few weeks will fly by. Since the last pod meeting, I have learned some interesting and frustrating

things about the healthcare world. I have learned that many nurses are not familiar with anatomy

as I had expected them to be. When I have patients come in that are nurses, they often do not

know muscles or boney landmarks. I have learned how to talk to them where they don’t feel I am

condescending, but still understand their plan of care. I had been under the impression that

nurses knew quite a bit of anatomy. I guess it depends on their specialty. I have also learned that

some doctors do not view patient care the same way that physical therapists do. Physical

therapists put patient care above everything else and want the patient to get all the help they

need. I learned that sometimes you have to groom the patient’s referring doctor’s ego in order to

get them to care for their patient to the fullest. That was a very frustrating discovery. If a patient

tests positive for an ACL tear, you cannot recommend an MRI in the assessment. You have to

tell the doctor that you found something that could indicate a ligament or muscular issue and

then hope that they choose to order an MRI. Worker’s comp doctors tend to do the minimum for

their patients as well.

One patient interaction that taught me more about being a PT was a lady I was seeing

post pelvic fracture. The patient has dementia and often came in a bad mood. After the first
session, I was nervous to continue working with her because she said some mean things during

her appointment. The second day that I worked with her, I tried a different approach with her. I

only talked about broad topics or memories from her past and used non-verbal cues to determine

how she was feeling. This was the first session where she was calm and kind to her therapist. It

brought a lot into perspective for me. I realized that, for me, its 45 minutes, but for her, its her

entire life. She forgets information and gets scared and then lashes out in fear. If I can distract

her and make her feel like she has a sense of control in her mind, she has an enjoyable physical

therapy experience. Each session after that has began with her being mean, until I chat with her

about something that she enjoys. Instead of dreading her appointment time, I look forward for

the opportunity to treat her and improve 45 minutes of her day. At the end of the day, I get to go

home a fully functioning person with no physical or cognitive deficits. That has really humbled

me to think about lately. Some days I have gotten emotional about the patients I have treated. I

think the hardest part of neuro is the emotional load I take on by caring about every single patient

and how I can give them everything in a 45-minute treatment session.

In terms of continuing ed courses that I am interested in post-graduation, I would like to

take a manual or graston course. I like the graston tools and would like to be trained in them. I

have hypermobile joints in my hands, so I think the tools would help me to prevent early

arthritis. I may also take the CSCS upon graduation if future employment opportunities see that

as competitive. I have a few connections for sports team physical therapy positions that may

want to see a CSCS certification.