Work Injury Physiotherapy: Essential Exercises and Treatment Plans

Have you ever questioned how a clearly minor change to your daily work routine should dramatically enhance your well-being? Imagine adjusting your chair, repositioning your monitor, or taking frequent breaks to stretch—these small changes can substantially prevent or help work-related accidents.

Often, it’s no longer the heavy lifting or the surprising accidents that bring us to our knees; instead, it’s the everyday struggle the repetitive motions can cause musculoskeletal injuries. Recognizing and enhancing those hazard elements early with the assistance of professional physiotherapy can be game-changing.

At AlphaOne Physio, we understand the impact of work environment and habits on your physical health. Our team is dedicated to treating common workplace injuries when they occur and educating and adjusting workplace ergonomics for our clients. With a focus on preventative care, we ensure that each individual has the knowledge and tools to maintain optimal health and prevent future injuries.

What is Work Injury Physiotherapy? How it works?

Work Injury Physiotherapy focuses on treating injuries sustained on the job, from muscle strain to more serious conditions such as chronic pain or common stress injuries. It includes a treatment plan for individualization to meet each patient’s unique requirements and specific injuries. Typically, this treatment combines manual therapy, such as manual therapy, with therapeutic exercises to elevate and reduce pain

The goal is to treat the injury and educate the patient on maintaining good health through ergonomic practices and preventive measures. Thus, they ensure a safe return to work and reduce the risk of future injury. Experienced physiotherapists play a key role in the recovery process, using their expertise to facilitate quick and effective rehabilitation.

What Are Effective Physiotherapy Exercises for Recovering from Work-Related Injuries?

Work Injury Physiotherapy often incorporates specific exercises tailored to the type of injury and the patient’s physical capabilities. Here are six common exercises, along with detailed steps for each, to help in the rehabilitation from various workplace injuries:

    Squats:

• Position your feet so they’re apart at the width of your shoulders.
• Gradually bend your knees, maintaining a straight spine and a lifted chest.
• Descend until your thighs are level with the ground as if you’re settling back into a chair.
• Drive through your heels to rise back to your initial stance.
  Complete 10 reps.
  

  Bird Dog:
  

  

• Position yourself on your hands and knees, aligning your hands under your shoulders and your knees under your hips.
• Stretch one arm forward and the opposite leg backward, keeping them straight and in line with your body.
• Pause for a few seconds in this extended position, then gently return to the starting point.
• Switch sides, doing 10 reps for each side.
  

  Wall Push-Ups:
  

• Stand facing a wall, slightly more than an arm’s length away, with feet set shoulder-width apart.
• Position your hands on the wall at the height of your shoulders.
• Flex your elbows and gently lower your torso towards the wall.
• Press back up to the initial position.
• Aim for 12 to 15 reps.
  

  Pelvic Tilts:

• Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the ground.
• Engage your abdominal muscles, pressing your lower back against the floor.
• Maintain this contracted position for a few seconds, then release.
• Perform this 10 times.
  

  Shoulder Blade Squeeze:
  

• Let your arms rest by your sides with your back straight, whether seated or standing.
• Draw your shoulder blades together as if clutching a pencil between them.
• Hold this squeeze position for a few seconds, then relax.
• Do 10 to 15 repetitions.
  

  Knee-to-Chest Stretch:
  

• Firstly, start it by lying on your back with both knees bent and feet flat.
• Draw one knee towards your chest, supporting it with both hands.
• Hold this position for 15-20 seconds, enjoying a mild stretch in your lower back and the thigh of the stretched leg.
• Gently lower the knee and switch legs.
• Repeat three times for each leg.

How Can Physiotherapy Address Common Work-Related Injuries?

Muscle Strains

Muscle strains are the most common type of injury reported in employees seeking occupational injury treatment. Physiotherapy helps by adopting the mechanical approach of therapeutic exercises and using hands to help the muscles regain their respective strength and elasticity. This involves returning the muscle to its correct grey state without risking further injuries, thus ensuring a smooth muscle recovery process.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

Prolonged typing or doing anything that entails repetitive movements may cause Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, which renders a person unable to feel anything in the hand due to chronic pain. Physiotherapy addresses Carpal Tunnel Syndrome by incorporating manipulations and self-exercise procedures that help minimise inflammation and offloading of the median nerve to improve hand functions and the disposition of severe painful sensations. You can receive quality care at our physiotherapy clinic in Calgary.

Knee Injuries

Because knee injuries are difficult and because knees are a primary mode of movement, they need extensive and proper management. Physiotherapists apply therapeutic exercises, including exercise therapy, light exercises, and waxing techniques. Other ancillary equipment could also enhance the knee’s stability throughout the recovery process.

Repetitive Strain Injuries

Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSIs) are observable in associations where people undertake repetitive tasks. Treatment is aimed at muscle reeducation exercises on the specific muscles and groups of muscles which have been weakened. They also have the important task of offering ergonomic recommendations to alter the patient’s workstation, making it safe for them to return to work again and decrease the likelihood of other injuries.

Traumatic Brain Injuries

Traumatic brain injuries, though rarer in the workplace, present unique challenges requiring an integrated approach.The patients’ treatment and correctly planned physical therapy are the strong points of physiotherapy that unite physical and cognitive training. This approach ensures that the treatment laying includes the physical and psychological effects resulting from the injury, enhancing the recovery process.