Movement and exercise are both fundamental to leading a healthy and happy life. Physical therapists can help – by identifying underlying movement and strength issues that can put a patient at risk for continuing to have persistent symptoms and to be at risk for developing future injuries. 

Freeman Rehabilitation Service has 80 full-time licensed rehabilitation professionals and 20 part- and full-time operational support staff achieves this by fully evaluating a person from head-to-toe to assess range of motion, flexibility, strength, movement and overall coordination. From these evaluations, they can tailor a person's exercise program and recommendations to help them in their pursuit of remaining as active as possible for a normal life experience. In total, we’ve completed more than 50,000 patient care visits at 10 locations in Joplin, Neosho, Anderson, Carthage and Pittsburg. 

The five most common injuries we regularly see are total knee replacements, rotator cuff repairs, ACL reconstructions, lower back and neck pain, and general balance and strength training.

To that end, physical therapists are focused on getting to the root of an individual's problem. Many injuries that appear to be different can be driven by similar underlying movement dysfunctions and strength imbalances. By focusing on the root of these issues, injury symptoms can begin to be resolved with more long-term success. 

We do this by working to help patients with goal setting and developing a practical course of action for reaching them. We help people to see what we are capable of and what steps they need to take to get there within the desired time frame. We encourage and provide vision for these individuals, which helps empower patients to know first that they can get better. Plus, we know the steps our patients need to take to get there. 

Physical therapists use a variety of ways to work on strengthening. These include body weight, free weight, elastic band and machine-based resistance training. 

We help a wide range of people ranging from those who suffer from traumatic- and overuse-related orthopaedic injuries, to those who go on to require surgery for various problems. We also see people who are at risk for falls due to poor balance. Some conditions we see after injuries to the neurological system includes: Post-concussion, stroke and traumatic brain injury. 

During a patient’s first visit, the patient and therapist develop a plan for helping the patient reach their set goals. Part of this initial plan is a home exercise program the therapists give the patient to work outside their scheduled visits. Follow-up visits are conducted until each patient’s goals are reached. These follow-ups are usually twice weekly or less, depending on the condition or injury or insurance. 

Overall, we are focused on quality versus quantity of visits. We are focused on hands-on interactive care that prioritizes patient engagement and empowerment. We are here for you.