St. Luke's Medical Center

St. Luke's Medical Center provides facilities and services that respond to the demands of the 21^st century. Specifically, the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine may be considered one of the best in terms of facilities (i.e. a fully equipped therapeutic gym), equipment (i.e. low power laser machine, infrared lamp, therapeutic ultrasound, etc.) and services rendered. In terms of facilities, the venue was structured accordingly because it is appropriate to accommodate the specific needs of patients or clients. It is also structured this way in order to make the patients comfortable while doing their PT sessions. The clinic is divided into different sections according to what case they are under. Moreover, the mood of the place is very welcoming. It gives you a feeling of assurance that you’ll gain something fruitful at the end of your therapeutic session. In terms of equipment, they are equipped with advanced and up-to-date devices which can be used to carry out treatment plans of the physical therapists. Also, the clinic offers high quality services to its patients or clients with the help of efficient and adequate facilities, as well as equipment. These high-quality services will not be possible if not for the people who work hand-in-hand in maintaining excellence of services.

  Therapeutic gym at St. Luke's

In terms of their patients or clients handled, it was said by the physical therapists who facilitated our exposure, namely Mr. Charles Alfonso and Mr. Chernenko Galeng , that there is a wide range of cases that they handle every day. Majority of the cases they handle are patients who had stroke, persons with low back pain, shoulder pain, frozen shoulder, and other sports-related injuries. In these cases, it is expected that there would be observable improvements in three sessions. When we asked what the rarest case was, Mr. Alfonso told us that it was persons with spinal injuries. He also added that based on his experience, it was the hardest to handle and also the longest. This case would take around nine months and still, very limited movements would be observed within this span of time. As with the age bracket, we have observed and we have been told that most of their patients are middle-aged to the geriatric age group.

  Physical therapists in action

Speech Pathologists are not included in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine because they have a separate section in the hospital. Physical therapists have no specific area of work or specialization because the patients are divided equally among them. One patient is attended to by only one physical therapist throughout his/her rehab sessions until it reaches completion in order to monitor the patient’s/client’s progress. Moreover, if the patient did not pose any sign of progress, the physical therapist could improve or adjust the treatment plan under the supervision of a physician in accordance with the RA 5680 (According to RA 5680, the Philippine Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy Law, Physical Therapists may only practice physiotherapeutic procedures only as directed by a licensed physician). This is done to see if the new treatment plan works better than the former. By way of this, the patients have a higher probability of getting improvements and progress.

Person with knee pain performing a strengthening exercise (leg press)

A physical therapist possesses several roles and responsibilities. First and foremost, a physical therapist is expected to apply his/her knowledge to improve a patient’s/client’s condition. A PT is responsible for the possible outcomes of his/her therapeutic plan because his/ her patient is solely dependent on his/ her knowledge and capabilities.

Mr. Charles Alfonso showing us the theraband

Another role of a physical therapist is to be a motivator. Moreover, he/she is responsible for gaining the trust of the patient/client. Gaining the trust of patients/clients is a huge factor in determining the outcome of the therapeutic sessions.  He/she must motivate the patient/client to effectively execute the tasks at hand. Motivating a patient must also be done with care because the PT must still focus on realistic goals and relay these to the patient. Another role of a PT which goes hand in hand with this is being a good communicator. Before any session can be started, the PT is responsible for the first impression that he/she may give out and so, being a good communicator can remove any doubts on the part of the patient in the PT’s abilities. Furthermore, good communication is also needed during the therapeutic sessions.

                Also, a PT is not just a healthcare professional with duties attached to his/her patient/client, he/she is also a colleague. He/she has the responsibility to maintain a harmonious relationship with other PTS, and other healthcare professionals. This harmonious relationship is crucial for the effective therapeutic sessions for the patient/client.

From left to right: Ansha Garcia, Faith Hussin, Mr. Chernenko Galeng, Jessica Morales, Victoria Agustin, Jan Crisostomo, Mr. Charles Alfonso

Individual Reflections

"Considering everything I had seen during our clinical exposure in the Rehabilitation Medicine section of St. Luke’s Medical Center, I would say that they are one of the best in the Philippines. By simply looking at their facilities and observing how the staffs work in there would prove my claim.

During the clinical exposure, I made sure that I would be able to observe everything a physical therapist does in the clinic and to know how they interact with their clients and I know through this, I would be guided with the things I need to learn to succeed. And this acquisition of knowledge was made possible with the help of Sir Fil Charles Alfonso and Sir Chernenko Galeng as we observed them do their work. I noticed that every time a therapist wanted their client to do something, he or she said it in an authoritative manner yet the caring feeling from the therapist was there, as if saying “you have to this because this will help you” and in this way too, he or she could pass the impression that he or she was equipped with enough knowledge to help his or her client. I also observed that the therapists there are able to make variations in their treatment plan because of the completeness of their facilities; modern and old, both of which are still very effective. We also had a very fruitful interview with Sir Chernenko and Sir Charles as we ask them questions with regard to Physical Therapy as a course and as a profession.

As I observed everything in the rehab, it feels like there is something in me that tells me that I am in the right track."

- Jessica Christine Morales

"As what I have observed during our group’s exposure in St. Luke’s Medical Center particularly in the Rehabilitation Medicine section, their facilities are utterly impressive in the sense that they have numerous equipment useful for almost all sorts of modalities. Such significant facilities present in the rehabilitation section, that I find them to have good qualities, and proven to be effective and safe are their electro-therapy equipment and therapeutic gym. During the observation, Sir Chernenko Galeng and Sir  Charles Alfonso, the PTRP assigned to assist us, gave us the chance to see, on actual setting, how Physical therapists work.

We were allowed to interrogate them while they were giving therapeutic exercises to their patients. Some of the questions asked are about their rehabilitation facilities, which are apparently not a problem. We also subsequently ask information regarding their handled patients/clients, like what are the common diagnoses and age. As with professional attributes, we feel very comfortable interacting with them, this might probably due to Sir Charles being receptive and also Sir Chernen being bubbly while we’re conversing with them. They answer each and every question that we have intelligently and transparently. But they were cautious with the words they use especially when comparing their services and facilities to the other rehabilitation centers. They share some tips on how to handle patients and how establish a good relationship with them. As what Sir Chernen and Sir Charles said: “You should not let your patient feel as if you’re the one who have the authority in rehabilitative session, but rather treat your patient with respect and be sensitive enough with what they feel—be it physically or emotionally.” Thus, professionalism is not merely measured on intelligence; morals still act as the main driving force of your feat."

- Marie Ansha Garcia

"The Rehabilitation Medicine Section in St. Lukes Medical Center was one of the best I have ever visited when it comes to facilities and services. That was a very good experience for a future physical therapist like me.

From the moment we stepped in, we already felt the warm atmosphere inside the clinic. From there, we met Sir Charles Alfonso, the PT in charge of us. He introduced Sir Chernenko Galeng, the PT to be observed. We toured around the clinic with Sir Charles to take a look at their facilities. We were introduced with different modalities. Some were new but some were a little old yet still effective for treatment. I can say that they have efficient and adequate facilities but these are nothing if not for the physical therapist that use them. Sir Charles told us that it is still the physical therapists that make a good clinic. Moreover, based on what I have observed, the physical therapists were very strict in applying modalities to patients. Instructions on how to use a modality and why it will be used were clearly stated so as to avoid misunderstandings. Through this, they made their patients trust them because they showed that they were equipped with enough knowledge to perform the treatment plan. Furthermore, they showed professionalism while working but still maintaining a harmonious physical therapist-patient communication. One act of professionalism that I observed was using appropriate words in communicating. We learned from Sir Chernenko that a PT should be a good communicator, for if not, the patient won’t believe you. A PT, too, should know how to deal with difficult patients. He also said that a PT should have continuous education to know the latest modalities and to be knowledgeable with what’s in."

- Victoria Agustin

“With the exposure we had at St. Luke’s Medical Center, I was given the chance to observe how physical therapists go about their work. The experience I had made me think that physical therapists may somehow be affected by their work environment. Just like what Mr. Alfonso and Mr. Galeng said, St. Luke’s is at par with hospitals offering the best rehabilitation services with their state-of-the-art facilities and equipment. It seems to me that they have no scarcity in terms of their resources. Due to these, I do think that they have little trouble fulfilling their responsibilities. It gives them the opportunity to focus more on giving the best quality services because they need not worry about what they do and don’t have to fulfil their tasks. In comparison to community-based rehabilitation, as was said by Mr. Galeng, physical therapists resort to alternatives to be able to execute their tasks due to lack of equipment and facilities. This would in turn, affect their performance. Though this might be true, Mr. Charles and Mr. Galeng emphasized that a good therapeutic session is still based on the PT's abilities and is outcome-based.

As with the qualities of physical therapists, I really do admire the level of attention they give to each patient. It made me think that if I were a patient there, I would really feel at ease that they would give me quality services. In addition to this, though we went there at a time when people are expected to be exhausted from a day’s work, I was surprised to see the physical therapists still at their best states. The feel of the whole place was very warm. They made everyone there feel that they would be attended to, and at the moment they are attended to, they wouldn’t be disappointed with the time they spent waiting.”

- Jan Christine Crisostomo