When patients come to you, referred for a specific purpose, injury, or ailment, have you ever asked yourself, how much do I really know about this person?
It should be simple when a doctor sends you a patient to tackle and heal their problem, but it’s not. You’re not alone in your worries, overworking a patient who may have high blood pressure, insisting a patient follow through with balance exercises when they might be suffering vertigo, pushing a patient fresh out of an unrelated surgery too hard. Where does it leave you when you are the one giving the directive?
Have you known, or heard of trainers who suddenly switch their direction when they’ve learned about a new diagnosis or symptom? How much do you know about Multiple Sclerosis, for example? Were you aware sometimes too much exercise and stress can lead to flare ups that might last for days or weeks? In the middle of a flare, MS patients are not advised to exercise at all. Keep an eye on the MS patient who gets too hot (which can bring on an attack), who starts to lose their balance, or who has trouble catching their breath.
What about the sedentary heart attack victim, just getting back into the swing of an exercise program? Care must be taken to slowly ramp up their activity so as not to overtax their body.
But what if you had no prior knowledge of any of these underlying issues? How would you defend yourself, when the only action you know how to take is to get your patient well and healthy according to the protocol designed for them based on information they provided? Does it mean, when you direct physical care in the most professional manner, in full defense of your patient’s health, that you are liable? Is ignorance of pre-existing diseases an effective way to protect yourself? Surely, your advice to your patient would change as you became aware of their full physical facts. Do you want your career and business to balance on the unknown, on the information a patient is willing to give you? Some patients may not want to disclose their diseases, or conditions, even though you, as a treating professional, have a right to their intimate medical history. That’s why it makes sense to prepare yourself for such circumstances, to ensure that you can keep your doors open and your services thriving…doing what you do best…healing people and returning them to a life of vitality.
Fitness Insurance is the best way to ensure your career is protected against all possible liability cases that you might face during your career.
