Community PM&R?

[GoodmanBrown]

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So awhile ago, PMR2008 posted a video with some cool robotics for helping folks with rehabilitation issues. I was just wondering, is this the everyday life of a PM&R doc? It seems to me that ye ol' local community hospital can't go out and purchase these super expensive devices for the few folks that need them in a mid-sized town.

So, are academic docs the ones who get to play with the high tech toys and run the super-specialized therapies? Or is there more out there for a PM&R doc in a smaller community than I'm recognizing? Thanks!

 

[PMR 4 MSK]

That's mostly academic and military/government, as no one else has the money for it yet.

Amputees are getting robotic/bionic limbs more, but getting them through insurance is very difficult, as you're talking $10K for a simple/normal BK prosthesis vs $100K+ for a bionic one.

Stroke, SCI and TBI pts are getting computerized enviromental manipulators, but again, these are very expensive. They make good videos, especially for the evening news, but are far less common than traditional methods. Maybe in the next 10-15 years, they'll become the norm, unless socialized medicine pushes in. Then forget it.