What to Expect During Your Initial Visit

Whether you have been to physical therapy before or not, we want you to know what you can expect when you visit one of our East Tennessee Spine and Sport Physical Therapy clinics around Knoxville!

Lots of questions can swirl in our minds about how long it will take, what the visit will consist of, and other thoughts/worries can come up as well. We are here to help provide clarity regarding your first visit to decrease the uncertainty.  

Here’s what you can expect at your initial visit with us:

• To fill out paperwork for our front office, however you can also find these forms on our website and bring with you on your first visit to save time

• Once you finish the paperwork you physical therapist will walk you back to the evaluation room, where they will sit down with you and discuss the nature of what has brought you into the clinic. Whether you are here as a result of new or ongoing pain, a workplace injury, post-surgical rehabilitation, sports injury, etc. we will thoroughly review your history to determine how to best help you. Don’t worry, this is not the only time you’ll have to explain what is going on, but it is the time for you to explain things as best as you can!

• The physical therapist will then begin a thorough movement assessment – we want to see how you move. We want to see how your pain/body responds to certain movements. Your physical therapist will also use their hands as a tool to aid in their examination and assessment. There are many specialized tests and methods used to help us evaluate that include hands-on examination and treatment.

• Once your physical therapist has completed the assessment and examination portion of your initial visit, they will explain what they’ve found and how they want to help you progress – through various treatments – and they will help develop goals for you and your specific needs. Followed by corrective manual therapy and corrective exercises to address the specific needs and limitations the physical therapist found during the evaluation.  

• Your physical therapist will finish your evaluation by creating your plan of care including working with you the number of visits, doses to perform your home corrective exercises, and length of time they think it will take from start to finish.  

Most importantly, know that your physical therapist wants to walk with you from your first visit with us, to your final visit! You can expect that we will listen, partner with you, and work towards enabling you and your body to return to an optimal level of functioning!

If you have any questions give us a call at any one of our clinics. We look forward to hearing from you and journeying with you!