Free PT clinic in Dumaguete

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“Aside from promoting volunteerism and service-learning, the clinic can also be an avenue for research to assess current realities of patients in indigent communities.”

Dumaguete City now has a physical therapy clinic for free courtesy of the Silliman University Institute of Rehabilitative Sciences at the Angelo King Building at the Silliman Medical Center compound, prioritizing patients from low-income households who have little access to healthcare services.

The clinic is open from Monday to Friday at 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. For appointments, contact it through mobile number 09168511522 or through their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/IRSFreePTClinic/.

The free PT clinic, which opened last December 1, aims to advocate better access to PT services for the underprivileged and provide high-quality and compassionate care amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Lily Ann Bautista, IRS director, said that the main approach of the free PT clinic program is to teach patients how they can continue their treatments at home and teach their caregivers, such as their family members, how to manage the patient’s PT needs.

The treatment room of the free physical therapy clinic; right photo, Dr. Lily Ann Bautista, director of Silliman’s Institute of Rehabilitative Sciences

Instead of requiring patients to have regular PT sessions in the clinic, Bautista said the clinic aims to make sure that patients would be able to continue their physical therapy on their own and visit the clinic only for the progression of their home program or follow-up visits.

“What is important is not the patient coming to the therapy, but what they can do outside of therapy to be functional in (their own home or community,” said Bautista.

The program, said Bautista, also aims to shed light on the need to continue other forms of healthcare and treatments that are not related to COVID-19.

While the healthcare system focuses on the pandemic, Bautista said PT programs should still continue because the condition of patients who need PT and rehabilitation can worsen in quarantine when patients are not able to get treatment.

“COVID-19, right now, is the center of our world, but what about the outliers? What about the things that’s going on outside of COVID-19?” said Bautista.

She assured that the clinic has health protocols in place for safety and protection from COVID-19. The clinic caters to only two patients per hour and accepts patients by appointment only to avoid overcrowding. Patients are required to wear a mask and face shield, as with the physical therapists and student-interns who will be in the clinic. Patients need to undergo triage before and after entering the clinic.

Gloves will be worn by physical therapists and student-interns for treatments that require physical contact with the patient.

The treatment room and equipment will be disinfected after each treatment and will be disinfected again at the end of the day.

The clinic, said Bautista, also provides practical experience for PT students in the university who are on their internship, but cannot train outside Dumaguete City due to quarantine restrictions.

As an extension program of Silliman University, the clinic adopts the service-learning approach of the university. Student-interns will provide the treatment in the clinic while being accompanied by IRS clinical instructors who are licensed physical therapists.

“Service-learning should start from the beginning of college education because this allows students to know what they’re serving, their capacity, and what is it that they’re in for. It’s about being involved and showing to the students the people they will be serving in the future,” said Bautista.

Aside from promoting volunteerism and service-learning, Bautista said the clinic can also be an avenue for research to assess current realities of patients in indigent communities. Patients will be screened to make sure those who have financial limitations will be prioritized.

The clinic is working with the City Social Welfare and Development Office and the Dumaguete City Council to identify and inform low-income households about their free PT services.

Those with indigent cards can automatically set an appointment, while those who do not have indigent cards can get a certificate from the barangay or the city mayor to show that they are from low-income households.