The Faith of Rehab
The Faith of Rehab seminar will look at different belief systems and explore them in light of the rehabilitation process.
Every day in our treatment centers we see patients with a variety of disorders related to the many body systems. We are very good at looking at these systems but frequently break down when it comes to issues of the mind or spirit. We "forget" that each individual comes to us with a belief system which may affect their participation in the healing process and the outcome of their therapeutic progression.
If we are not asking the questions which link functional performance to spiritual aspects, we are missing out on perfect opportunities to arrange our treatment plans to reflect the entire sphere of our patients lives. Not only are patients from differing backgrounds, but each faith may have rituals or ceremonies related to illness and healing. Without therapist knowledge of and respect for the individual's traditions, there is a definite impact on the outcome of treatment.
A person of faith who has a disabling illness or accident may find it difficult to openly discuss their faith or beliefs. It is important for the therapist to be trained in subtle methods to assess the patient's spiritual needs and find appropriate methods to incorporate these into the treatment regime. Having knowledge of different practices of faith allows the therapist to expand and enhance the settings and components of the therapeutic intervention and individualized treatment to meet the patient's spiritual needs i.e. kneeling in prayer, singing or chanting, being able to prepare foods for religious holidays.
Participants in this seminar will be provided with methods to include religious beliefs in the therapeutic process. While an assessment of faith practices and the inclusion of them into treatment are not billable services and may spawn resistance from other disciplines, finding ways to include this aspect of patient's lives into therapy may allow the patient to be more fully engaged in treatment and to have a deeper rapport with the therapist which will ultimately improve functional outcome. The coupling of faith practices and treatment concepts allows us to focus on the entire person.