HD PHYSICAL THERAPY Recognizes National PT Month By Participating in Global PT Day of Service

WAKEFIELD, Mass. - Oct. 21, 2015 - PRLog -- National Physical Therapy Month is celebrated each October to recognize how physical therapists and physical therapist assistants help transform society by restoring and improving motion in people's lives. However, transforming lives does not stop at the clinic, we also reach out to our communities and look for ways to give back. This October, HD Physical Therapy was thrilled to recognize National PT Month by participating in a new, comprehensive movement called “Global PT Day of Service,” on Saturday, October 17^th.

Global PT Day of Service (PTDOS) began as a thought that, what if, on the same day, clinicians, students and associated staff of the physical therapy profession volunteered in different communities all around the world? What if, they then shared those moments and acts in a way that was galvanizing, inspiring and promoted connections all over the world? PTDOS would give the physical therapy community the unique chance to unite and contribute to something that would impact the lives of everyone involved.

HD Physical Therapy chose the Floating Hospital for Children at Tufts Medical Center in Boston as our service site, working closely with Andrea Pappaconstantinou, the Director of Child Life Services. Our main purpose was to give back, and Floating Hospital was a perfect fit. In 2009, Ed’s triplets were born there at 25 weeks gestation; they were all micro preemies weighing under 2lbs. each. The hospital cared for them for the following 5 years, providing not only expert medical care, but also endless amounts of support and resources. It was only fitting that we gave back to the team that had given the Harding family so much.

On Saturday the 17^th, the HD Physical Therapy family joined together and brought toys, books, puzzles and games to Ace’s Place, the hospital’s patient play room. We delivered balloons to all of the inpatient kids at the hospital. Plus, we gave stuffed animals and small mirrors to the NICU patients and families. The mirrors assist the families of the NICU babies with kangarooing. Kangaroo care is the practice of holding a diapered baby on your bare chest. This skin-to-skin contact helps babies thrive because they are comforted by your familiar scent, touch, and the rhythms of your speech and of your breathing. However, when the baby is lying on your chest, you cannot see their face. So, the mirrors allow parents to hold their babies close, yet still see their faces and expressions in the mirror.

“Global PT Day of Service provided an amazing opportunity for my immediate family and my HDPT family to join together and give back to the Floating Hospital. All of the doctors, nurses, therapists and staff members there were fundamental in helping my children reach every milestone. It was extremely rewarding to be able to go back there and say ‘thank you’ again,” said Ed Harding, PTA, HD Physical Therapy’s co-founder and CEO. “It was a meaningful day for all of us.”

At HD Physical Therapy, ADVANCE Magazine's 2013 ‘Best PT Practice Contest’ silver medalist & the Wakefield Lynnfield Chamber of Commerce’s 2015 Business of the Year, we are committed to the health and happiness of our patients. Everyday we work to restore each person's maximal function with consistency and compassion. Offering distinctive, inventive and proven rehabilitation treatment, our devoted professionals strive to deliver a successful and enjoyable experience to every patient we meet. HDPT proudly serves the communities of Wakefield, Reading, North Reading, Wilmington, Lynnfield, Saugus, Melrose, Peabody, Stoneham, the North Shore, and Essex County, Massachusetts. For more information about HD Physical Therapy, please call 781-587-0776, or visit www.HDPTonline.com.