Frequently Asked Questions

This depends on the nature of your injury, how long you’ve had your injury, the severity of the injury, what your personal goals are, and of course the fact that all people respond differently to physiotherapy intervention. Your Physiotherapist / Occupational therapist will give you an estimate following your initial assessment.

There are many things you can do to promote healing after an injury or surgery including:

– Eat a balanced diet 

– Get plenty of rest

– Hydrate

– Complete your exercises as recommended

– Listen to your therapist’s advice

Reserved parking is at the front of the clinic and there is overflow parking across the street.

Your initial assessment will take around 45-60 minutes. Subsequent visits will be 30-60 minutes. Your diagnosis will determine if you will require weeks or months to recover (eg Total shoulder 3-6 months, Flexor tendon repair 12 weeks, tendinitis 6-8 weeks).

Our clinic is not covered by OHIP and we do not directly bill private insurance. Look into coverage to see if you have occupational therapy and/or physiotherapy coverage. We accept all methods of payment, Visa/Mastercard, e-transfer, debit, and cash. If you have financial issues but still require treatment, talk with your therapist privately and we will attempt to work out an alternative payment plan to get you the therapy you need.

Both are Master’s Level educated professions with regulatory Colleges. In our field of interest (upper extremity), both are trained to perform identical tasks, from splinting, to wound care, to exercise prescription and assessment. Whether you see an OT over a PT (or the other way around) will depend on your coverage as certain insurance companies will only cover one or the other. 

When checking on your insurance coverage, make sure that either physiotherapy and/or occupational therapy is listed as a reimbursable service. Insurance policies have limits and restrictions on what you can claim. If you are still not sure, just ask our front desk for help.

We are the designated upper extremity specialty treatment facility for the WSIB and we have advanced practice therapists who consult with Big Thunder Orthopedic Associates.

OT’s and PT’s are direct access practitioners and as such we do not require a referral from your doctor to assess and treat you. However, at some point in your treatment, in order to submit your costs for therapy to your insurance plan, a doctors script is often required.

Between $10 – $200. They are sometimes custom made from low thermoplastics or off-the-shelf prefabricated splints.

With some surgical procedures, early motion exercises may be the difference in achieving a great outcome or developing post surgical complications. We are concerned about muscle, tendon and joint mobility first and foremost. Therapy may start/be required while stiches are still in place. 

Loose clothing, easy access to your shoulders (avoid long sleeves), perhaps indoor slippers/ runners. Please do not wear strong scents.