Most people out here still believe they do, and wait until the thing that would have taken six weeks takes six months. You can ring us directly. Here is exactly how far that goes before a doctor has to be involved.
Direct access is real and it is not unlimited. We would rather you know the boundary on a public page than discover it at visit eleven.
10
The most we can treat you without a referral, counted from the first visit.
30
Or thirty days from the first visit, whichever arrives first. It is not ten visits and thirty days. It is whichever ends sooner.
Then
At that point we consult your physician to keep going. If you are not measurably better by then we refer you on, which is the right outcome anyway.
Missouri Revised Statutes section 334.506, as amended effective 28 August 2023. A therapist may treat without a prescription if they hold a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree or have at least five years of clinical practice. One caution worth stating plainly: Medicare generally still expects a physician signed plan of care for continuing coverage, so if Medicare is paying, expect to involve your doctor sooner than the statute alone requires.
Before you ring anybody. None of these is a diagnosis. They are the same screens we would start with, and they will tell you whether what you have is settling on its own or is the kind of thing that gets worse by waiting.
Stop any of these if it produces sharp pain, dizziness, numbness or a giving way. Do them near a counter or a wall you can catch. If you have had a fall, a fracture, recent surgery, chest pain or new weakness in a limb, skip all of this and telephone a doctor today.
From an ordinary kitchen chair, arms folded across your chest, stand fully and sit fully five times as quickly as you safely can. Time it.
Hands at your sides, eyes open, one foot off the floor, next to the counter but not touching it. Time both sides separately.
Reach over your shoulder as if scratching between your shoulder blades, then reach up your back from below. Compare left with right.
Standing, bend slowly toward your toes and come back up, then place your hands on your hips and lean gently backward. Note which direction is worse.
Ten paces at your normal speed with somebody watching, then ten back. Ask them what they see rather than how it feels.
If one of the five tests above came out badly, that is reason enough to make the appointment. You do not need permission from anyone to start, and if it turns out you need a doctor rather than a therapist, telling you that is part of the job.
