What is physiatry?
Physical medicine and rehabilitation is also called physiatry. It focuses on treating people who have a health problem or injury that impairs their normal function.
What is a physiatrist?
A physiatrist is a doctor who works in physical medicine and rehabilitation.
These doctors complete four years of medical school and four years of residency training. Many complete fellowship training in a specialty area. After that, they can take the tests of the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation to become board-certified.
They provide many medical services. But they don't do surgery. They treat many conditions that affect the following:
- Muscles and bones
- Heart and blood vessels
- Lungs and breathing
- Nervous system
This includes conditions such as arthritis and back pain as well as work- and sports-related injuries and brain or spinal cord injuries.
These doctors work in many settings, such as:
- Hospitals.
- Inpatient rehab centers.
- Outpatient rehab centers.
- Private practice.
A physiatrist leads a rehab team. This team may include physical and occupational therapists, speech therapists, rehab nurses, and others. The goal is to treat the whole person. This means looking at a person's physical, emotional, work, and social needs.