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A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A CRANIALTECH CLINICIAN |
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Reshaping Children's Lives®
First things first! Every clinician, regardless of their level of experience, goes through our training program.
Our training program is very comprehensive starting with one week of clinic observation, followed by one week of classroom training
with our corporate trainer - including simulated hands-on training. The next months are spent in clinic with
senior mentors as you gain more and more independence. During the first year, clinicians are provided with three different levels of
structured training to keep pace with their new knowledge base. The Training Program was designed by Cranial Technologies to ensure
all patients receive the same high level of care and outcomes regardless of what location they are treated in.
Evaluation: As therapists, you are already used to evaluating patients before treating. It's exactly the same at CranialTech. You will evaluate the infant's head shape, neck ROM, and developmental status and create a treatment plan.
Casting: Babies entering treatment must
have their head cast. This allows CranialTech's manufacturing division to design a band specifically for their misshapen
head. The casting process takes between 11 and 12 minutes and mom and dad are in the room to help hold the baby's hands
still. Most of the time, the babies will let you know that they don't like their hands being held, so if crying bothers
you, this won't the job for you. Once casting is finished, the cast will be shipped to our corporate headquarters
for DOC Band® fabrication. The band is shipped back to your center for the fitting. Casting appointments are approximately
one hour in length to give you plenty of time to get the full medical history, answer any parent questions and obtain an
excellent cast.
Fitting the DOC Band: At this appointment,
you will fit the infant with the DOC Band for the first time and instruct mom/dad in the wear and care of the band.
Some trimming on the router may be needed to further customize the fit. Fit appointments are also one hour in length to allow
for skin checks, assessment of proper fit and instruction.
Adjusting the DOC Band: Since the
infant brain is constantly growing, adjustments are done weekly for young babies and biweekly for older children. Adjustments
involve removing parts of the liner where growth is necessary to bring the head to symmetry. These appointments are approximately
15 minutes in length and are scheduled three per hour.
Exercises: Now for something you are more familiar with - stretching, strengthening and developmental activities. Although we
aren't set up to do traditional one-on-one therapy for children with severe developmental delays, we are very involved in looking at
the whole child. Roughly 90% of our kids have some degree of neck tightness, so neck ROM and strengthening are an important part of what
we do. If a child has neck tightness, it must be resolved to get the best outcome in the head shape correction. A good number of our
patients are also hitting their developmental milestones a bit late. We certainly have time in our schedules to educate mom/dad
on activities that help in achieving those important developmental milestones. Most parents are excited to have some exercises
to perform to enhance their little one's development.
Consults: Pediatricians and parents alike look to the CranialTech Clinician as the expert in the evaluation and treatment
of plagiocephaly. You will meet with parent(s) and the infant to fully evaluate the infant's head shape, neck ROM and
developmental status. Consult appointments are 30 minutes in length.
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Disclaimer: The information contained in Cranial Technologies' website should not be used as a substitute for the medical advice of your physician. There may be variations in treatment that your physician may recommend based on individual facts and circumstances. If you have questions regarding treatment of an infant currently in the DOC Band®, clinicians at the center providing treatment should be contacted directly. For feedback or general questions about our website, please email the webmaster at wbmgr@cranialtech.com Website Last Revised: January 12 2007 Created: August 16 2002 ©1997-2008 Cranial Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. DOC, DOC Band and Dynamic Orthotic Cranioplasty are Trademarks of Cranial Technologies, Inc. U.S. Patents 5,094,229; 5,038,312; 5,951,503; 6,346,353.
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