Even physical therapists get the blues

The other night after working out, I was cooling off after breaking a good hard sweat, and I had gone to change my clothes out of my sweaty workout stuff. I came back out of the restroom and most of the people had already left, and the only people left were myself, Jason (my physical therapist/fitness trainer) and some guy who, from the sound of it, is apparently a colleague of his, or at least someone who works in the chiropractic office next to the physical therapy room. So I continued to drink more of my water in order to cool down and I also wanted to dry off a bit before walking out to my car on a cold winter night while still damp from sweat. I listened to the conversation between Jason and this other guy and it rapidly became apparent that they were expressing some unhappiness about their jobs. It seemed their main complaints were inattentive doctors, long waiting periods for patients, due often to overscheduling, ridiculous charges for services rendered, patients not getting enough time with their doctors and what they perceived was an overall lack of quality patient care. It rather startled me to hear all of this, but by the same token, it didn't surprise me one bit, given the health care crisis in this country.

I was tempted to butt in and ask their views on the whole issue of health care, but I listened attentively to two health care professionals expressing concern over their chosen career field and where it's headed. It was dismaying hearing their concerns, because I have to admit that there were times when I was one of Jason's physical therapy patients that I felt as if Jason was forced to be overscheduled and having to treat too many patients at the same time, leaving me often to my own devices to figure out what to do next. However, when you're in PT long enough, after a while you know what to do and you don't need some physical therapist standing there telling you what to do and how to do it. But there are times when you're expecting to do one thing and they tell you to do something else entirely unexpected, so it was times like those that I felt a bit frustrated by what I perceived to be a problem of the therapist being forced to divide his attention too many ways. Jason strikes me as someone who really cares about his patients and wants the best care for them possible, and I never knew that he experienced any frustration over his job until now. It makes me wonder if this is part and parcel of why he wants to leave his job to become a school teacher when the field of physical therapy is one that is so very secure and sure to grow as we Baby Boomers age and suffer more injuries. I hate the idea of someone who is so good at his chosen field eventually leaving to do something else, but Jason has to follow his heart and do what he feels is best for him and for his growing family (four kids!).