Can you give us any tips on effective documentation in this area? Have you had any trouble with insurance reimbursement?
Answer
That is a great question. I would absolutely focus on the positive tests for pelvic girdle pain as evidence that there is pelvic joint dysfunction, and the root impairment is a problem with load transfer across the pelvis. We have had no trouble with insurance reimbursement whatsoever. Going back to the tips, I would focus on the function. The patient is having pelvic girdle pain that is interfering with her ability to perform her job as a waitress. Pain is impairing her ability to care for her children at home. She is having difficulty traveling to and from work because of pelvic girdle pain. When we focus on function, most often the insurance carriers really understand that it is not just pain. We are saying this pelvic girdle pain is leading to a functional impairment and here is what it is and here is why we are seeing it. We are seeing these positive tests and our plan of care is going to be restore the ability of these joints to transfer load, to restore the normal motor control of those important muscles, and to restore those specific functions.
Cynthia Neville, PT, DPT, WCS, BCB-PMD
Dr. Cynthia (Cindy) Neville, PT, DPT, WCS is Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy, Mayo Clinic Alix College of Medicine, in Jacksonville, Florida. She is a Women’s Health Certified Specialist (WCS), board certified by the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties. She serves on the faculty of the Mayo Clinic Florida Orthopedic Physical Therapy Residency Program, and advises multiple medical specialty programs at Mayo Clinic Florida. Her outpatient clinical practice at Mayo Clinic Florida serves women and men with pelvic floor disorders. Dr. Neville has authored and co-authored several research articles and book chapters on the topics of pelvic health rehabilitation, pelvic pain, and urinary incontinence. She has presented her research and provided rehabilitation and medical education nationally and internationally. She has developed successful Pelvic and Women’s Health Rehabilitation Programs at premier healthcare organizations including the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago (now the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab) and Mayo Clinic Florida. At Brooks Rehabilitation in Jacksonville, Dr. Neville developed the first institutional pelvic health rehabilitation program across all levels of care, and the first credentialed physical therapy women’s health residency program in the state of Florida. She has trained more than a thousand physical therapists, occupational therapists, physical therapist assistants, and physicians in pelvic floor examination and pelvic health rehabilitation.
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