In all honesty this is a difficult question to answer because sometimes there is more difference between two practitioners of the same profession than there is sometimes between practitioners of different professions.  As a gross generalisation, physiotherapists use a whole mixture of techniques including soft tissue work, manual therapy (joint mobilisation for example), rehabilitation exercises to strengthen specific muscles and a minimal amount of manipulative treatment.  Manipulation is where a joint is clicked. 

Osteopaths sit somewhere in the middle between physiotherapists and chiropractors and they use less of the soft tissue techniques and more manipulation.  Chiropractors tend to use mainly manipulation of joints as their tool followed by soft tissue work and a number of other treatments.  All therapists tend to use specialist equipment.  An example of what equipment a physiotherapist might use include Shockwave, ultrasound, laser and some specific measurement tools such as Vi-Move which analysis precisely your movement patters. 

Each discipline will have different approaches to solving the same problem.  My feeling is that whichever practitioner you see  their diagnostic skill and accuracy is the most important thing, because if you don’t understand exactly what you are treating and why you are treating it then almost anything else you do will not resolve the problem.  All practitioners should pride themselves in preventative therapy to ensure that your problem does not return and at the end of the course of treatment you are in a much better place than when you started the treatment.  As an example, we as a practice, offer preventative management which involves a review process to ensure that your problem is fixed, and also if you need any further advice on exercise that can be done at a later date when you have returned to a normal lifestyle.  Very often if the pain does return following the course of treatment, the reason for this is that on loading your body your tissues are still irritated or damaged and your practitioner should be able to work this out and provide you with a plan to make sure this doesn’t happen.

If you have a cash back plan to claim your expenses direct from your insurance provider then you will need to produce receipted invoices.  You can mention this to your practitioner upon commencement of treatment and receipts will be emailed in PDF format.  You can email Ruth our Administrator anytime to request receipts at admin@physioelite.co.uk. 

We are recognised as a provider by all major insurance companies and if you have preauthorisation for physiotherapy treatment please provide this when booking your appointment or email authorisation number to admin@physioelite.co.uk.  If there is an excess due on your policy this is payable direct to us at Physioelite.

On our website you will see the 4 steps: 1. Accurate diagnosis 2. Accurate hands on management plan 3. A full exercise plan to ensure that you are empowered to deal with your condition. 4. A prevention plan if it is required to ensure your condition does not return and your wellbeing is maximised. 

If these 4 steps are carried out reliably and accurately it is highly likely that your treatment process will be both highly effective and prevent your condition from returning.  At Physioelite we pride ourselves on the patient getting value for money and ensuring that your condition is solved, and it does not return.  This ensures your investment is effective. 

On some occasions the injury that you have does not fully clear up with physiotherapy and in these circumstances often you need to be referred on to another expertise.  An example of this would be a back condition that is not resolved as there is an underlying structural reason why this is the case and in these sorts of circumstances we would refer you on to a specialist consultant in spinal care.  My preferred provider is Mr Ian Harding at the Spire Hospital and we would provide you with a letter prior to your consultation to ensure the consultant fully understands our intervention and what we feel may be part of your problem.  Often the consultant will then recommend MRI and X-rays to investigate you and ensure that you have the correct solution to any injury we are unable to clear up.