Acute Care clinic to open its doors wider

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Christopher R. Morales
  • JBER Public Affairs
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska --  Boom! Crash! "Ouch!" Injuries occur in the blink of an eye; if only getting a referral could take place as quickly. But one call to the acute care clinic appointment line is all it takes to address an orthopedic injury.

The 673d Medical Operations Squadron Physical Therapy Clinic opens their acute care clinic to all beneficiaries Nov. 16. Acute injuries are non-emergent (no risk to life, limb or eyesight) issues with the joint, bone or muscle related to a distinct cause, like a fall.

"Often times, a musculoskeletal injury occurs, and patients are slowed down by our current medical process," said Capt. Ronald Miller, 673d MDOS physical therapist. "The acute care clinic is designed to catch people when they have that initial injury and offer appropriate treatment in a timely manner."

The streamlined referral process saves patient's time, reduces pain and cost associated with an injury, as well as lightens the burden on other clinics.

"We would love to capture all of those [acute] cases, because if it is truly musculoskeletal, we can deal with that in a very short time frame and therefore get the patients back to work much quicker," Miller said. "In most cases, a normal low-grade injury will resolve over 2-3 weeks. If it doesn't resolve, the injury would move to what we call a chronic injury; chronic being more challenging to treat."

The clinic diagnoses whether a case is in their purview. They still screen appropriately and refer to the right provider if necessary, Miller said.

Treatment relies mostly on exercises and hands on treatment to regain function. Treating injuries early can mean the difference between weeks and months of recovery.

"After an injury we work on getting pain down and mobility up, then we can work on improving strength," said Senior Airman Erik Hayworth, 673d MDOS physical medicine technician. "The key is to keep a range of motion."

The therapy differs from injury to injury, but the regimen's basic goals work for all musculoskeletal issues.

"My first appointment was just laying out the steps to help me. It was pretty great; I left [there] knowing what was going to happen next," said Staff Sgt. Constance Vaughn, 773d Civil Engineer Squadron operations management. "The staff is great - good at communicating, very patient and knowledgeable of their job."

The acute care clinic opened in August to active-duty patients, Miller said. There was enough demand that the clinic decided to extend its service to all beneficiaries.

This is a lot of effort on their part. Out of the five total physical therapists at the clinic, two are dedicated to the acute care.

To schedule an appointment, call the hospital appointment line at 580-2778 and ask for an "Acute Physical therapy appointment."  If you would like more information on the program call the physical therapy clinic at 580-1701.