In 2022, mobile therapy is the name of the game – not only for patients, but for the OTs who treat them.
Today’s guest, OT Tiffany Topp, started mobile therapy practice Next Dimension Rehab in 2020, and has seen the difference firsthand.
“Patients, when they're coming out of the hospital, they've been told things like, ‘Well, you know, whatever you have after three months is pretty much what you're going to get,’ which is totally not true. Totally not true. And the thing that is most important is the mentality of the patient. If they can see themselves getting better, if they can see themselves moving their arms and they have the drive to get better, that is like more than half the battle. So if they're willing to work, then I will give them as much as they want to work.” – Tiffany
In this episode, Tiffany talks with us about the differences she sees between in-home therapy vs clinic, her goals for stroke patients in the first 10 days of rehab, the power of positive mentality, and the role of a good OT in a patient’s healing process.
“The biggest role, I believe, as a therapist being on the very, very frontline is you're the first person that they really encounter in their journey and education is the biggest thing. Just making sure that they understand what a stroke is and, and how it's happened and educating the family on what to expect next, because the whole rehab process can be so confusing.” – Tiffany
Tiffany also shares her favorite ways to help her patients with reps and accountability, how mobile rehab also benefits patients with co-existing conditions, like age, weight or lymphedema, and her predictions for the future of stroke rehab.
In This Episode
(03:03) Tiffany’s journey as an OT, and her new rehab practice
(06:16) The difference Tiffany sees between the patients she helps in the hospital system and in mobile therapy
(07:58) Tiffany’s approach to patients in the first 10 days
(10:41) How patient mentality affects outcome
(11:43) In-home therapy vs clinic
(15:19) The overlap between physical and emotional therapy
(19:54) The best way Tiffany’s found to communicate with patients, monitor accountability and track reps
(24:15) Tiffany’s experience and training with lymphedema, which many stroke patients also have
(27:54) The future of stroke rehab
Our Guest
Tiffany Topp (OTR/L, CLT-ALM) started Next Dimension Rehab in 2020, an occupational therapy practice specializing in neuro rehabilitation, lymphedema management, and upper extremity orthopedic impairments, where she uses Saebo stroke rehabilitation technology.
Tiffany received her Bachelors of Science in Exercise Physiology and her Masters of Science in Occupational Therapy from West Virginia University.
Resources & Links
Henry Hoffman on LinkedIn
Pete Durand on LinkedIn
Saebo
On YouTube
On Instagram
On LinkedIn
Saebo’s Stroke Caregiver Support Group
Saebo’s Stroke Survivor Support Group
Next Dimension Rehab
