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Next Step Physical Therapy introduces answers
to frequently asked questions about services, our facility, and
pre/post visit information Click on a
subject heading below to view questions and answers relating to
your selection. Links throughout the answers will guide you to
further information on our website or from other sources. Should
you have any further questions, please consult our Contact
Us page.
- What rehabilitation services do you provide?
- Why
does water therapy make a difference?
- What if I don’t like being in
a pool?
- How can you help me?
- What will I need to bring on my first visit?
- What
should I expect on my first visit?
- What will happen
throughout my rehabilitation?
- What will I need to bring for
my therapy sessions?
- What insurance companies do you accept?
- What forms of payment do you accept?
- Do I need
a doctor’s prescription to come to your facility?
- How long
is a typical appointment?
- How far in advance should I make my appointments?
- What
is your policy on cancellations?
- Can I continue to use the facilities,
after I am discharged?
- What is Concierge Service?
- How much do Concierge Services cost?
- Why do you provide Concierge
services?
- What does the Concierge Service provide?
Direct manual therapies that are focused on relieving pain, improving motion
and restoring function in both aquatic and land-based settings.
Our patients are assigned to one therapist, but benefit from the
collective expertise of the team.
Being one of the very few facilities in the area with a pool and
extensive knowledge of aquatic therapy, we help many people break
the cycle of pain.
Having a technologically advanced automated monitoring and sanitizing
system that helps to maintain optimum water chemistry at all times,
makes us a SAFE place for patients, especially those with autoimmune
issues.
We are providers of aquatic services on behalf of larger
clinics, hospitals and institutions.
Concierge to a wide range of supportive services that address
peripheral issues, which impact the primary condition. Visit our
concierge desk.
We provide a great place to work on your recovery.
“Our patients refer others to us because they trust they
can.”
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 In water you are significantly lighter than on land. You can move
better and you can concentrate on addressing your condition without
the stresses of your own body weight.
Fibromyalgia
Working in water helps the therapist and patient to identify
inappropriate muscle recruitment, [Tension] Paradoxical breathing,
[Shallow breathing] and compensatory movement in response to
pain [limping, hunching, etc]. Relaxation and stretching
in warm water enables individuals to develop control over these
issues with an improved mind set as the pain is usually buffered
while in warm water, and shows the patient that movement does
not always have to hurt.
Arthritis
and Muscle Tone
People are buoyant, and when up to our shoulders in water, we
assume about 10% of our body weight. (A 200 lb person weighs
20Lbs in this scenario). That gives anyone the opportunity to move
better and longer, resulting in true initiation of cardio exercise,
muscular development and range of motion therapy. Water
having accommodating properties means you can control resistance
with speed, and being submersed in water lets one develop resistance
patterns in natural range and function patterns.
Balance Control and Gait Training
Water serves as the perfect tool for balance control training
because we move slower in water with more deliberate movement
and without the risk of falling and injuring ourselves. This
translates to patient comfort, assistance with stability while
submersed, and a means of safe recovery if stability is lost. Gait
training performed in water allows the patient to extend their
gait without loosing stability while doing so.
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 We provide land-based therapies as well. The typical patient
will soon learn that the more critical events may start in water,
but invariably move to land-based therapies once the program
is established in the decreased gravitational environment of
water. We
have options for both environments and are proven to be effective
either way.
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We treat people for conditions related to:
Sports
Injuries
Stroke
Work and auto related
injuries
Chronic Pain
Morbid Obesity
Cancer
Autoimmune disease
People in need of rehabilitation and treatment of:
Balance / Vestibular disorders such as: BPPV, Etc
Back,
neck, shoulder and arm injuries
Hip, knee, ankle and
foot injuries
Spinal Cord injuries
Pre-Operative conditioning
Post-Operative rehabilitation
Total joint replacements
Osteoarthritis
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Fibromyalgia
Osteoporosis
RSD, MS, CP
And many other orthopedic and neurological disorders.
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 First Visit:
You
may need a prescription and/or a referral from
a physician depending on your insurance carrier and plan. This
can be established when you call for your appointment.
Please
have two forms of Identification. This is for your protection.
Insurance card/s and form of payment for co-pays or co-insurance.
Bring
your calendar or planner if you have one. So you may set- up
your schedule.
Wear
comfortable clothes and shoes. If coming for a hip, knee or ankle
injury please brings shorts.
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If you haven’t downloaded and completed the intake forms
via the web, you will be given them at time of arrival. If you
are completing the intake forms when you arrive, we ask that
you arrive 20 minutes early for your first appointment.
You will be introduced to the people who will assist you throughout
the process.
You will be interviewed about your general health and the condition
that has brought you to us.
You will undergo a physical / Clinical assessment of your condition.
For those over the age of 55 this evaluation will include a balance
test, unless there are reasons that prohibit this screening.
You will be apprised of the course of action and given an orientation
package.
Your referring physician will receive a report explaining our
findings and plan of action.
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You will be educated on the nature of your condition and be told
why we are doing what.
You will be engaged in the plan that was set up for you and with
you.
You will be given homework, or Home Exercise Program, which is
nothing more than exercises that will help you to accelerate the
process.
Your progress will be measured and communicated to you and your
doctor.
You will be discharged when your physical therapy goals have been
met. Your Home Exercise Program (HEP) will then be updated allowing
you to continue the work done in therapy.
You will note that many of the exercises contained in the HEP
will be familiar to you as your homework exercises; we drill them
in, so they become second nature to you, enabling you to have a
regimen which is familiar to you. In addition, you will have the
option of continuing your exercise in our facility.
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- Comfortable clothing and shoes.
- Bathing
attire and two towels if applicable. Your therapist will tell you
what will happen on your next visit, so to avoid carrying unnecessary
items every time you come.
- A means of payment if applicable.
- Bring as much determination
as you can carry.
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Medicare and supplemental insurance such as: BC/BC, AARP, Etc
Horizon Blue Cross/ Blue Shield, Corvell.
For a detailed list of insurance providers that are accepted,
please visit our Front Office area under the topic Insurance
- Click Here.
You can also call for additional insurance company information,
as there are many plans within the many different insurance carriers.
Our Front Desk will handle the inquisition and pre-certification
process for you.
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We accept personal checks, Cash, Visa, MasterCard and Discover.
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New Jersey is a direct access state. This means you can wake
up with a backache, or pain in your shoulder, and come to our
facility for treatment for up to six weeks without seeing your
doctor. Insurance companies do not generally accept this method
so you must be prepared to pay for treatment privately. The
technical answer is no you do not always need a prescription,
however!
We do not recommend this method, as there can be many reasons
for a backache, or a painful shoulder. Your doctor will examine
those symptoms, perform various diagnostics, and address your condition
from a medical perspective.
It is in your best interest to seek medical attention from a licensed
physician, who will communicate his or her findings and recommendations.
Although we are qualified to treat pain, pain does not always
originate from where you feel it. That is the sensible approach
we recommend to everyone.
If you do not have a doctor, our referral network can find a
doctor for you. Please visit our referral network area
at the concierge desk.
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Be prepared to be here minimum one hour, maximum one and one half
hours.
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As part of our customary practice, we try to get you evaluated
within 24 hours of your initial call. We then urge you
to plan your treatment process by scheduling appointments a minimum
of two consecutive weeks going forward.
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We require 24 hours notice for intentional cancellations. If an
emergency disallows you to keep your appointment, we ask that you
call when you can. If you do not come or call, we will automatically
bill you 25 dollars.
If three consecutive appointments are missed and you do not
call, we will offer you an alternative facility and send notice
to your doctor and insurance company that you have been discharged
for non-compliance. Our position is that there are many people
who want help, whom should not be inconvenienced by those who
don’t.
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Yes we are delighted to offer different programs for people to
continue improving their condition, however there are guidelines.
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You can pay either monthly or per visit. The monthly plan
is more economical for those who plan to continue on a regular
basis. We recommend exercising a minimum of 3 times per week.
We do not offer annual memberships.
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All activity is on an
appointment basis, and those who are not prompt, cannot overflow
into the next time frame. This is to maintain a schedule
fair to all. A typical visit is one-hour exercise time
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You
will not be working with a therapist however we will keep
you current on additional techniques and exercises to remain
progressive
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You must understand this is not a gym,
but an affordable way for you to continue all you have learned
while we worked with you.
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For aquatic activities, you must
bring your own bath and floor towels.
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The concierge desk is a service that we developed to help our
patients with the peripheral issues associated with visiting our
facility and in coping with their condition.
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There are no costs for use of the concierge service, however you
must be a new, current or alumni patient of our organization to
enjoy this benefit.
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The concierge desk exists because since our organization was established,
we have helped arrange various services for some of our patients
at one point or another. These were people who had all to do just
dealing with their condition never the less, arrange transportation,
find an item that can assist them or call an insurance company
for pre-certification and hold for an hour.
Over time we realized how those little helpings made big differences
in peoples lives. It just made sense to make our good intentions
and resources available to all our patients and raise the bar
within our organization.
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The Concierge desk can:
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Find you a safe and trusted transportation company and arrange
a schedule to and from our facility through our dispatch service.
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Pre-certify
your care with your insurance carrier.
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Arrange your follow-up
visit appointments to your referring physicians’ office if you wish to have us do that for you. “That
is one less call to make”.
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We will call you to remind
you of appointments with us.
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We can put you in touch with local
support groups and workshops that focus on your particular
ailment or assist you in starting your own.
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We can temporarily
host a small support group that has no other home, such as
a start-up group or one that has been displaced.
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We will be
happy to locate and obtain devices that aid in you in daily
life. Those items include books, exercise
equipment, personal aids, braces, orthotics, driving aids such
as hand controls, etc. We locate these items on your
behalf without charging any administration fees for doing
so, however, you will be responsible for the costs of any
items we help you to locate.
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Working with local pharmacies, we can
arrange that your pharmaceutical items be delivered to our
facility while you are in session. This saves you time and
energy. “ That is one less stop
to make”.
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We arrange for equipment specialists to come to
our facility, in order to properly communicate your needs in
concert with your therapist. This method saves time, energy
and gets it done rite the first time.
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We can proudly refer you
to healthcare professionals who are proven leaders in their
professions and have established a trusted history with our
organization through our own experiences and the recommendation
of our patients. Please visit the referral network area for
the interesting details.
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