By Bob Arnold
A new Brookhaven-based therapy venue is helping people improve their health by addressing balance and foot issues and making them better walkers.
At a Wesson Lions Club meeting, Richard Barker explained the unique work he and his colleagues, Mike Griffith and Andy Biggs, are doing at TRI Therapy (TRIT) through its Gait Balance and Feet program.
“Our whole idea is preventing falls.” Barker said.
Barker said his group started shifting its focus a few years ago to fall prevention after receiving referrals for gait and balance issues. Their patients now include older persons, amputees, those with multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injuries, people who have suffered strokes and sustained head injuries and others who have had knee and hip replacements and feet and ankle surgeries.
“One in four people over 65 years old fall ever year, with one in twelve of them seeking medical care and one in five of those who have consulted a doctor requiring a procedure,” Barker said. “Complications from falls are a leading cause of death among older persons.
The problems start with feet, which play a big role in pain and muscle strength, and TRIT begins with measuring pressure on patients’ feet, Barker explained. As people age, he said, feet are the first part of the human body to lose strength. Once the feet go, ankles, knees and hips are next.
For its program, TRIT invested in computerized Tekscan devices -- the Tekscan balance system, which evaluates the stability of feet to bear weight, and the Tekscan Mobilemat to capture important data. While four different people can have four different observations of a person’s foot pressure, the Tekscan devices produce biomedical data which can inform decisions on helping patients, Barker pointed out.
Based on the data, TRIT customizes exercise plans for patients to maintain strength and motion that are lost with age.
“Older people, in particular, need fall prevention,” Barker noted. “It’s an ongoing need. We help them stay independent. That is our mission and our goal and what we are trying to achieve. We are bound to help them so they can do things safely and for themselves.”
TRI Therapy does not need physician referrals, although they may be required for insurance coverage. The TRI Therapy Gait Balance and Feed program is available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at 509 Brookway Boulevard.
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