Thihan is a highly experienced Sports Physiotherapist who has held roles with the Melbourne Renegades, Bangladesh Cricket, Hampshire Cricket, and most recently as the Rehabilitation Manager for the Sri Lankan Cricket Team. Thihan is also one of the hosts of the Physio Social Club Podcast.

In this episode, we took a tangent from cricket, and discussed Thihan’s recent leg injury and his experiences with injury, surgery and rehabilitation. Thihan offered very interesting insights into the experience of having a serious injury and surgery in a developing country, reflections on the real experience of a lengthy rehabilitation, and advise for students and new graduate physios for prioritising their assessment and management. There is a lot in this episode! Thanks Thihan for a great conversation.

In this episode:

• 0:00 About this episode and welcome Thihan
• 3:05 Thihan’s injury – fractured tibia and fibula. There was no pain until after the surgery – reflecting on when pain is not associated with pathology
• 5:30 The experience of having surgery in a developing country
• 9:30 How did you process the experience? Shared decision making with the surgeon
• 12:23 ‘Letting go’, controlling what you can control and allowing people to do their job
• 14:40 Fracture healing, pain management, IV paracetamol, risks of compartment syndrome, experience of having an epidural
• 20:50 Waking up halfway through orthopaedic surgery! (not as bad as it sounds)
• 25:45 Being present and taking things one step at a time. It’s hard to think about the bigger picture as a patient. Meet the person where they are
• 31:40 Being proactive in your own rehabilitation. Lessons for practitioners
• 36:35 How can students keep things simple and be effective? Have a system and a structure to your assessment that you can repeat until you learn the patterns. Know why you are asking questions.
• 42:40 What is your job as a sports physio? How is this similar to hospital-based work?
• 47:30 How do you stay motivated during long-term rehab?
• 50:30 Goals in long-term rehab can often be impairment goals, e.g. ankle dorsiflexion range of motion, because this helps you visualise progress
• 53:40 Maintaining a positive mindset during the rehab journey
• 55:30 Empathy – 'get in the hole' with the patient / person
• 59:00 Summary – the secret to long-term success is to engage with the process of your rehab (or learning), review and repeat throughout your career.

Read more about Thihan here: https://thecricket.physio/about

The Physio Social Club podcast: https://physiosocialclub.com/about

Read Thihan’s Linked In posts related to his injury, surgery and rehab here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thihanchandramohan/?originalSubdomain=au

Physio Foundations Podcast Summaries: You can find articles based on Physio Foundations podcast episodes at www.Perraton.Physio or on the Perraton Physio LinkedIn page.

Visit our YouTube channel for more: https://www.youtube.com/@PerratonPhysio

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This is a discussion aimed at health professionals and health professional students. Always seek the guidance of a qualified health professional with any questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition.