Hydrotherapy

Is Hydrotherapy right for you?

Meeting with one of our clinicians will help you assess whether hydrotherapy is right for you. Some questions they might ask include:

• Do you need assistance getting in and out of the pool?
• Do you have any open wounds?
• Do you have any outlets such as a urinary or stoma bag? This is not a limitation but is important for us to know.
• How do you best communicate?
• Are you able to indicate if you are uncomfortable or uncertain and need assistance?

Our allied health team can also make modifications (e.g. flotation equipment) to ensure you are not limited and are receiving the support you need. One of the biggest indicators if hydrotherapy is right for you, is if you want to do it. Support workers are welcome to come and participate in the session or just be there to help you change into dry clothes after a session. Often our staff train support workers to facilitate a hydrotherapy program for participants so they can attend independently. People who are not appropriate for the pool are those who cannot manage their bladder and bowels, have sensitivity to chlorine, or have had deep radiotherapy in the past three months. Water-based exercise is not beneficial for people with osteoporosis as exercise needs to involve loading the bones and joints to build bone density; the water is too supportive in this case. However, if pain and stiffness is associated with osteoporosis it may help to ease these areas of concern.

What to expect in a session?

An aquatic screening assessment is completed for everyone wanting to participate in hydrotherapy.

At the initial in-clinic appointment the therapist will assess your mobility and strength and discuss your goals (including what you feel limits you in your activities). It helps them get to know you and your level of function before getting in the pool. From there, they can create a personalised exercise plan tailored for you. The first session at the pool will then assess if the exercises are suitable and decide on the level of intensity. At Alliance Rehabilitation, our goal for hydrotherapy is for our participants to attend the pool independently, either with a support worker or alone, and follow their own individualised program. We also hope to see you progress from hydrotherapy to exercising on land. We can’t always float, so we like to help you build back strength in the supported environment of the pool and translate it back into land-based therapy.

WorkCover

If you have been injured at work, you may be eligible to a WorkCover claim. It can depend on if your employer is self-funded or managed by WorkCover Queensland. We help you regain the skills, strength, and movement needed for you to return to work and help prevent re-injury. To be referred for WorkCover a doctor or specialist needs to complete a Work Capacity Certificate. WorkCover appointment lengths vary depending on the condition. Read More >

Private and Corporate

We accept all private and corporate referrals. We have an online referral form you can fill out for us to contact you or you can call and book. We generally ask if you are seeing us privately, to send through some history of the condition we will be treating for the clinician ahead of the session. We also accept referrals through Medical Healthcare Plan, CTP and other insurers, private health funds, and community organisations such as My Aged Care. Initial sessions are one hour and following sessions are scheduled at the clinician’s request. Read More >

Medicare (Bulk Billing)

We offer bulk billing Medicare services under a GP Management Plan and Team Care Arrangement. This allows you to have five allied health visits per year, resetting in January. You can use these five services over any specialty. Your general practitioner can help you to find out if you meet the eligibility criteria for a care plan as they are for chronic disease management or, a medical condition likely to be present for at least six months. When your GP has completed the plan and the referral – you are able to have as many bulk billable sessions as discussed with your doctor up to a maximum of five. You have the option to continue to see us privately once your sessions have run out. Each Medicare session is only 30 minutes. Due to the nature of TCA appointments, hydrotherapy is not always an option, but is possible if scheduled within a group session or booked immediately before or after another hydrotherapy session at the same pool. Read More >