LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. –
This year's campaign for National Physical Therapy Month, held in October, is "Physical Therapy: It's all about movement."
"Movement is essential to our everyday lives," said Master Sgt. Michele Borel, Langley Physical Therapy Clinic flight chief. "Immobility impacts physical and mental health, as well as the quality of our relationships, work and communication."
The core purpose of physical therapy is to enhance health and quality of life through human movement and functional mobility. This is accomplished with conservative approaches to relieve pain and prevent or limit permanent physical disabilities.
If rehabilitation experts are not utilized to treat an injury, such as a sprained ankle, it could result in wearing an air cast, x-rays, using crutches and the inability to participate in normal day-to-day activities for weeks or even months, said Sergeant Borel.
Physical therapists understand the effect nerve, muscle and joint injuries have on anatomical movement.
Military physical therapists and technicians deploy around the world for regional contingencies, peacekeeping and humanitarian missions and natural disasters to provide specialized treatments, wound management, gait and balance training as well as manual therapy for service members and others in need, said Sergeant Borel.
"Our mission is simple; get our Airmen moving so we can restore normal pain-free function, increase human performance and return our Airmen to duty so they may continue to fly, fight and win," said Sergeant Borel.
Throughout the month of October the Langley Physical Therapy staff will be hosting free classes that involve group exercise and passing out information with the services they provide.
For more information on National Physical Therapy Month and the Langley Physical Therapy clinic, call Sergeant Borel at 764-6963.