Managing Acute Pain with Rebekah Griffith
Be A Better PT
Join me as I talk with @TheEDDPT about acute pain, connecting with our patients, and addressing pain-related suffering. Dr. Griffith is a PT who specializes in care in the Emergency Department, teaches continuing education courses related to ED PT practice, consults with facilities that want to start ED PT programs, and teaches DPT students about ED PT. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram @TheEDDPT and on her website: If you enjoy this episode, share the love! When you share this episode with your friends, throw me a tag so we can connect! I’m ALWAYS looking for...
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Avoiding Burnout with Sandy Hilton
Be A Better PT
This episode is about something that is relevant to all helping professionals—avoiding burnout. Join me as I talk with Sandy Hilton, a veteran clinician who has been practicing full-time for over 30 years. Join Sandy and me as we talk about how she’s managed to not only avoid burnout, but to stay open, curious, and excited about clinical practice all this time. To join the Be A Better PT Facebook Group, visit: If you enjoy this episode, share the love! When you share this episode with your friends, throw me a tag so we can connect! I’m ALWAYS looking for fellow PTs...
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Playing Within the Constraints with Donald Mull
Be A Better PT
Join me as I chat with my friend Donald Mull about motor learning, behavior change, and patient-centered care. Donald is a Chiropractor who is particularly interested in ending the physical inactivity epidemic. He and I recently met and immediately bonded over our deep passion for helping people boost their self-efficacy. This conversation was a lot of fun, I’m sure you’ll enjoy it! To join the Be A Better PT Facebook Group, visit: If you enjoy this episode, share the love! When you share this episode with your friends, throw me a tag so we can connect! I’m...
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Connecting with our Patients with Terry McGee
Be A Better PT
This episode is about something that is at the very foundation of healthcare—connecting with our patients. Join me as I talk with my friend and mentor, Terry McGee. Terry and I met during my time at Johns Hopkins. He was the director of the orthopedic residency program that I participated in and has been a significant influence on my practice from the beginning. We’ve remained friends and I’m so pleased to have him on the podcast to share his wisdom and compassionate approach to care with the world. To join the Be A Better PT Facebook Group, visit: If you enjoy this...
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A Journey of Pain & Yoga with Scott White, Part II
Be A Better PT
Join Scott White and me in part II of our expansive conversation, where Scott talks about how he integrates what he learned through his own journey with pain into his physiotherapy practice, as well as how the principles of yoga inform his practice. If you haven’t given part I a listen, I highly recommend doing so, as it gives a rich context to Scott’s approach and why he is so passionate about integrating the principles of yoga into his physiotherapy practice. If you’re interested in learning more about Scott, you can find him on Twitter @ScottInnerFocus or via his...
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A Journey of Pain & Yoga with Scott White, Part I
Be A Better PT
In this 2-part episode, I chat with Scott White, founder & director of Inner Focus Physiotherapy in Perth, Australia, a clinic that is centered around an active approach to care, employing many principles of yoga practice in their approach. In part I, Scott tells the story of his multi-year journey with persistent pain and over-medicalization, and how he found his way out through yoga. If you’re interested in learning more about Scott, you can find him on Twitter @ScottInnerFocus or via his website: Click to check out the book that got Scott on his path to wellness:...
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Finding Safety with Renee Ostertag
Be A Better PT
Join me on this week’s episode where I talk with Renee Ostertag, a PT-Psychologist who specializes in nervous system regulation. In this fun & explorative episode, Renee and I discuss safety & threat, awareness, transference & countertransference, dependency, and of course, helping people find safety within themselves. If you’re interested in learning more about Renee, you can find her on , or via her websites: and To join the Be A Better PT Facebook Group, visit: If you enjoy this episode, share the love! When you share this episode with your friends, throw me a tag so we...
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Finding Fulfillment with Tom Jesson
Be A Better PT
This episode is about something that’s extremely important for all of us— finding fulfillment in our careers. Join me as I chat with Tom Jesson, a clinician-turned-sciatica-expert who has authentically used social media to carve his own path through this broad field. So far Tom has published a clinican-focused E-book on sciatica and has another one in the works, along with a book on cauda equina syndrome. Listen in as we talk entrepreneurship, finding fulfillment, and making your career your own. If you’re interested in learning more about Tom, you can find him on Twitter @Thomas_Jesson,...
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Pain & Pathoanatomy with Ron Kochevar
Be A Better PT
In this episode, I talk with my friend and former fellowship mentor, Ron Kochevar, who helped me to piece together some key aspects of my practice during our time working together. Join Ron & me as we dive into the intersection of pathoanatomy and pain-informed care, a topic rich with complexity and nuance. If you’re interested in learning more about a mechanisms-based classification of pain, see the 3 articles below: Smart et al., 2012 (1): Smart et al., 2012 (2): Smart et al., 2012 (3): You can learn more about Ron on his websites: or To...
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Enactivism & Pain-Related Suffering with Peter Stilwell, Part II
Be A Better PT
In this two-part episode, I talk with Peter Stilwell, whose work has radically expanded my understanding of pain and other deep concepts like mind-body dualism and the biopsychosocial model. In part II of this two-part episode, Peter and I talk about the topic of Peter’s latest paper— pain-related suffering. This is a topic rich with complexity as well as applicability to anyone working with people in pain. Peter’s approach to pain-related suffering is well-complemented by Enactivism, so if you haven’t listened to part I yet, I’d recommend doing so before or after this episode....
info_outlineIn Part II of this two-part episode on the powerful tool that is MI, we’ll talk through the remaining 2 of the 4 core skills of MI and the 4 MI processes. As in the previous episode, I provide exercises to help you integrate and implement this information into the clinic (see below for a full list).
You can find the episode in blog form at www.AndrewHammondPT.com/post/motivational-interviewing
You can find the intention-setting infographic at www.AndrewHammondPT.com/post/clinical-reasoning
If you enjoy this episode, share the love! When you share this episode with your friends, throw me a tag so we can connect! I’m ALWAYS looking for fellow PTs to nerd out with. You can connect with me via:
My Website: www.AndrewHammondPT.com
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/AndrewHammondPT
Twitter: www.Twitter.com/AndrewHammondPT
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/AndrewHammondPT
If you’re interested in learning more about my mentorship program, visit www.AndrewHammondPT.com/PT-Mentoring
EXERCISES:
Exercise 4: Reflective Listening
Use 1-2 reflective statements with each patient the next time you’re in clinic.
You could reflect: the meaning of what the person said, the associated feelings, or what may be said next.
Remember, just make one guess and keep it simple.
*Notice how the person responds*
Exercise 5: Summarization
Use one summary with each patient the next time you’re in clinic.
You could link past and present information, you could summarize their aggs and eases during history-taking, you could summarize salient exam findings as they accumulate, or you could summarize someone’s ambivalence as it relates to a behavior they want to change.
*Notice what happens after the summary*
Exercise 6: Engaging
Think about your patients on your caseload right now.
Ask yourself, “Are there any that I need to re-engage with the next time they come in?”
Whoever comes to mind, ask yourself: “How is my rapport?” & “Do I have a clear understanding of the help that they seek?” & “Do I have a clear understanding of their hopes & expectations?”
Whichever area(s) seems deficient, spend a little extra energy on that at the next visit.
*Notice how the session goes*
Exercise 7: Focusing
Think about your patients on your caseload right now.
Ask yourself, “Are there any that I need to re-focus with the next time they come in?”
Whoever comes to mind, ask yourself: “Do we have a shared sense of direction?” & “Do we both agree on their goals?”
Whichever area(s) seems deficient, spend a little extra energy on that at the next visit.
*Notice how the session goes*
Exercise 8: Evoking
Think about someone on your caseload right now who hasn’t been very committed to the process so far, despite having clear goals.
At your next visit with this person: ask for change talk, using open-ended questions; reflect change talk; affirm change talk; or summarize change talk.
*Notice what happens next*
Exercise 9: Planning
Think about someone on your caseload right now who hasn’t followed through with the plan despite vocalizing commitment to the plan.
At your next visit with this person, get more specific with aspects of the change plan: time, place; where it fits into daily routines; how they will remember; dosage; and identifying (& solving) potential barriers.
*Notice what happens next visit*