The physiotherapy team acts in all Clínica São Vicente units: hospitalization, emergency, intensive care, intensive and semi-intensive cardiology. After a physician’s indication, Physiotherapy develops the treatment programs fully interacting with the other Clínica São Vicente professionals, thus creating a multi-professional team of dynamic and continuous work.  
  
Quality

Rehabilitation is lead by specialists from the areas of respiratory and motor physiotherapy, and the quality of this work is obtained and maintained through constant and periodic evaluations of the treatment program and the use of protocols of therapeutic actions – detailed behaviours for each case that allow the necessary follow-up and continuity of the recovery process. The ongoing training given to all the team is part of the routine and is done through periodic scientific meetings, discussions on techniques and behaviours as well as on clinical cases, attending specialized congresses and publishing technical articles, guaranteeing the philosophy of constantly enhancing the services offered at Clínica São Vicente.

Before, during, after

The focus on the patient’s independence and quality of life is what guides and determines each step of Physiotherapy. To obtain that, the service might encompass three phases:

1) Early start, even before a surgery or being affected by many pathologies, preparing the organism, preventing possible complications related to the surgical intervention or installed diseases or the effects of long hospitalization periods;
2) Just after the surgery or installed diseases, in order to speed up the recovery process and to help the patient regain his or her movements;
3) After medical discharge, when patients and their guardians receive guidance to gradually return to their daily activities.

The responsibility of physiotherapy does not finish upon discharge: the team is available to clarify doubts of the professional who will handle the patients outside Clínica São Vicente.

Understanding each one of the areas of practice of physiotherapy:

The physiotherapy sessions at Clínica São Vicente are indicated for the hospitalized patients and the behaviours that are conducted through manual techniques, electric and mechanical devices to apply electrotherapy, thermal therapy, cryotherapy and others. In the acute phase, the work is developed while the patient is in bed. During the recovery phase, it is extended to other areas of the clinic.

Respiratory Physiotherapy and Ventilation Assistance

It is applied for the prevention and treatment of clinical or surgery patients, with respiratory diseases or issues that can contribute to develop them during hospitalization. The follow-up during the pre-operative prepares the lung for the surgery and during the post-operative prevents or treats complications due to the intervention.

The patient in intensive care with ventilation assistance (use of artificial respiration), has physiotherapy follow-up both for the motor aspects, mitigating the muscle and articulation consequences due to the lack of mobility in bed as well as the respiratory aspect, helping to accelerate the removal of mechanical ventilation equipment, helping to obtain respiratory independence.

The physiotherapy team is also responsible for the non-invasive ventilation procedures, in other words, the use of nasal or facial masks in order to avoid the intubation of a patient with acute respiratory insufficiency – a method that requires surveillance and strict criteria to be applied and has shown good results. The pulmonary rehabilitation is performed on patients with pulmonary disease and can improve the control of the disease, reducing the acute exacerbations and the need for hospitalization.

Cardiovascular physiotherapy

The physiotherapy team works on prevention and post-operative treatment of cardiac patients and those with vascular alterations, and in order to improve the efficiency of the cardiovascular system. The patient’s rehabilitation in intensive units is continuously followed-up by a multidisciplinary team, in order to obtain functional recovery and adapting the patient to cardiac rehabilitation programs that shall continue after discharge in order to readapt the patient and to increase the cardiovascular condition.

Neurofunctional and trauma-orthopaedic physiotherapy

Neurofunctional physiotherapy for the patient with neurology problems and the trauma-orthopaedic physiotherapy that deals with the recovery and prevention of bone, muscle, articulation and ligament lesions, are two areas that are served by a team of professionals who specialise in neurology and traumatology. They are responsible for evaluating and conducting the appropriate treatment of the most acute cases of neurological and trauma-orthopaedic pathologies.

Analgesic Physiotherapy

The direct treatment of pain crises with practices and equipments combined with medication, can relieve the algesia sensation (painful sensations). A team that is trained for this type of intervention is available whenever needed by the patient.

Rehabilitation during hospitalization

This is the stage of functional re-education, when the patient is prepared for life after discharge, in order to have the most independence and functionality, characteristics that must gradually be expanded, with the continuity of physiotherapy at home or in other locations. The patient and the people responsible for their recovery receive the necessary guidance to make it easier to return to the daily activities and to be socially reintegrated in the shortest period possible.