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Editor's Note
Take a Break
By Anne Ahlman, MPT
Monday June 8, 2009

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Vacation used to be a luxury, but in today’s world it has become a necessity.
— Author Unknown

Now that we’ve commemorated Memorial Day and summer has officially begun, it’s time for PTs and PTAs around the country to think about taking a vacation. Sounds easy, doesn’t it? All you have to do is make those plans and go! But so many of us put off this simple pleasure when we feel bad leaving our patients to fend for themselves, and others are discouraged from taking time off due to the constraints of the schedule (it’s so hard to get vacation coverage!). Then there’s the problem of budgeting for a little trip in the face of a sagging economy. What’s a responsible therapist to do?

Some therapists are shunning their vacations, following the old adage, “A change is as good as a rest,” and instead are attending a conference or signing up for a few CE courses in the guise of taking a break from patient care and recharging their batteries.

Others are taking shorter trips or even staying home, enjoying the traditional “staycation” model of repose — I don’t know about you, but I find it nearly impossible to relax amidst my normal surroundings, and feel guilty that I’m not going into the clinic as usual to look after my patients if I’m in town.

So what’s the answer? Providing physical therapy is a rewarding but physically demanding occupation, and therapists are no different from their patients in the need for downtime. It’s only when they have allowed their own bodies to recover and their minds to unwind that they can be the most useful in helping others.

If I’d known I was going to live so long, I’d have taken better care of myself.
— Leon Eldred

It’s time to plan a vacation.

Anne Ahlman, MPT, Physical Therapy Editor

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