You know you need help. Your knee has been aching for months, or your balance feels a little off, or you're just not moving the way you used to. But the trip to the clinic is the part that stops you.
Maybe you don't love driving in Salem traffic anymore. Maybe the weather is bad, or the parking is a hassle, or you'd have to ask your daughter to take the morning off work to bring you. For a lot of adults over 50, the barrier to getting better isn't the therapy itself. It's getting to the therapy.
That is exactly the problem virtual physical therapy solves. And for the right situations, the research says it works.
Let's walk through what it actually is, what the evidence shows, what you'd need at home, and, just as importantly, when Dr. Raj will tell you honestly that you're better off coming in.
Virtual physical therapy is a real appointment with a real doctor of physical therapy, held over video instead of in person. At HWY Physical Therapy, that means you and Dr. Raj Pusuluri see and talk to each other live, on a screen, from the comfort of your own home.
It is not an app. It is not a library of exercise videos you follow alone. It is not a chatbot. It is a licensed clinician looking at how you move, asking about your history, and building a plan for your body specifically. The only thing that changes is that you're on your couch instead of in a waiting room.
Think of it the way you'd think of a video call with your grandkids, except the person on the other end went to school for years to help you move without pain. You show up, you talk, you move a little on camera, and you leave with a plan. Same care, no commute.
Here is where we want to be straight with you, because your health deserves honesty, not a sales pitch.
A large research review published in the journal Age and Ageing pulled together 11 studies covering about 1,400 older adults, average age in the mid-to-late 60s. It looked at physical therapy delivered by video versus the same therapy delivered in person, for people recovering from things like knee and shoulder surgery and knee arthritis.
The finding: for the outcomes they measured, such as quality of life, walking distance, getting up from a chair, knee movement, and leg strength, video-based therapy was "non-inferior" to in-person care.
That phrase, "non-inferior," is worth unpacking, because it's the honest heart of this. It does not mean virtual is a miracle upgrade. It means that for those goals, patients did about as well either way. The screen did not hold them back. What mattered was doing the right exercises with a skilled therapist guiding them, not whether that therapist was across the room or across town.
And this isn't one lone study speaking. Other research points in the same direction. A 2024 analysis of telephysiotherapy for older adults found it improved both physical and psychological outcomes, which makes sense, because staying active and staying connected to a clinician is good for your mood as well as your muscles.
A separate review of guided virtual therapy for older adults living at home found something even more striking. Across every study it examined, not a single one found in-person care to be better than the virtual version for functional progress, the everyday business of moving, walking, and getting around. When several independent research teams, looking at different groups of patients, keep arriving at the same place, that is a pattern worth taking seriously.
There's a second finding that surprises people, and it's a big one. In several of these studies, people actually attended more consistently when the therapy was virtual. A separate 2024 review from the University of Queensland put rough numbers on it: video telerehab was linked to about 8 percent higher attendance at sessions and about 9 percent higher follow-through on home exercises compared with in-person care, with patient satisfaction similarly high for both.
Why does that matter so much? Because in physical therapy, the plan only works if you actually do it. The best program in the world does nothing if you keep missing appointments because the drive is a hassle or the weather turned. Take away the commute, and a lot of people simply show up more. Showing up more is how you get better.
We do want to be careful here. The researchers who found those attendance and adherence numbers rated the certainty of that evidence as low, because the studies varied a lot in how they were run. So think of it as a real and encouraging pattern, not an ironclad promise. The takeaway is simple and honest: for many older adults, virtual therapy is easier to stick with, and sticking with it is most of the battle.
Now the part we won't skip over. That same Age and Ageing review found that pain relief tended to be a little better in person, and the authors believe that comes down to the value of hands-on treatment and the in-person relationship. So virtual is not automatically the answer for everything, and we'll come back to exactly when it isn't.
Here's the quiet truth about physical therapy for older adults. The biggest reason people don't get better isn't that the exercises don't work. It's that life gets in the way of finishing the program. The ride falls through. The weather turns. A week of appointments slips, then another, and the momentum you built is gone.
Virtual therapy removes the single most common excuse, the trip itself. When your appointment is in your living room, a rainy Tuesday or a car in the shop no longer costs you a session. That is most likely why the research keeps finding that older adults attend a little more, and follow through on their home exercises a little more, when care is delivered by video. The certainty behind those numbers is modest, but the logic is plain: the therapy you can actually keep up with is the therapy that helps you.
There's a cost angle too. That same body of research found virtual care tends to cost the health system less than in-person delivery, without giving up results. For you, that shows up as a simpler, steadier way to get consistent care, without the drive tacked onto every single visit.
If you're worried this requires fancy technology or that you'll fumble the buttons, take a breath. It's simpler than a lot of things you already do on your phone, and you do not have to figure it out alone.
Here is the whole setup, start to finish:
If any of that feels like a lot, here's the reassuring part. Research on older adults and video visits found that the most common reasons people lean on a helper are simply being less comfortable with the technology, not anything about their health. In other words, needing a hand with the setup is normal and expected. Having a son, daughter, or friend get the call connected the first time takes the pressure off completely, and once it's set up once, the next time is easy.
Every visit is a little different, but here is the general flow so nothing feels like a surprise.
The first few minutes are just conversation. You and Dr. Raj talk, the same way you would sitting across a desk from him. He'll ask what's bothering you, when it started, and what makes it better or worse. He'll want to hear a bit of your history, any surgeries or falls, and the medications you take. Most importantly, he'll ask what you want to get back to, whether that's gardening, lifting a grandchild, walking the dog, or just going up the stairs without gripping the rail. There are no wrong answers, and you don't need to prepare anything ahead of time. He simply wants the full picture of you.
Next, he watches you move. This is the part that surprises people, because it works better on camera than they expect. Dr. Raj will guide you through some simple movements so he can see how your body actually works: standing up from a chair, reaching overhead, bending, shifting your weight, and taking a few steps within view of the camera. He's watching how you balance, where you're stiff, what you guard, and what makes you wince. This is exactly why having a bit of clear space and a sturdy chair nearby matters. If a movement doesn't feel safe, you skip it, and he finds another way to see what he needs.
Then he builds your plan and teaches it to you. Dr. Raj will show you a small set of exercises chosen for your body and your goals, then watch you do each one and correct your form in real time, exactly as he would in the clinic. If something hurts or feels off, he changes it on the spot. You won't be handed a generic sheet and left to guess. You'll practice each movement with him watching until you feel confident doing it on your own.
Before you finish, you'll know exactly what comes next. You'll leave with a clear, short list of what to work on, how often, and when your next visit is. A first evaluation usually runs about an hour, and follow-up visits are shorter. The whole way through, Dr. Raj is coaching you, not reading from a script or rushing you off the call.
A lot of the people reading this aren't the patient. They're the adult child, often juggling work and their own family, trying to help Mom or Dad get care without adding another logistics headache.
Virtual physical therapy is genuinely good news for you. Here's why.
You can be in the appointment too, even from another city. Video visits let a family member join from wherever they are, so you can hear Dr. Raj's recommendations firsthand, ask the questions your parent might forget to ask, and help keep the home exercises on track afterward. You don't have to drive across town, take a half day off, or rely on a summary secondhand.
The research backs up how much this helps. Studies on older adults and telehealth found that involving a family member in virtual visits supports safety at home, helps keep the patient on track with their exercises, and, in the researchers' words, helps "mitigate technology frustrations." Your presence isn't just moral support. It measurably smooths the whole thing out.
Practically, your role can be as light or as hands-on as needed. Maybe you just get the tablet set up and propped at the right angle, then step back. Maybe you stay on the call to take notes. Either way, you're helping your parent get consistent care without the transportation puzzle that so often derails it.
If you're joining to help, a few questions make the visit far more useful. Ask Dr. Raj what specifically is going on and what's driving it, what the home exercises are and how often your parent should do them, what warning signs mean someone should call the clinic, and whether he thinks virtual, in-clinic, or a combination is the right path from here. Write the answers down while you're on the call. Keeping them somewhere your parent can find later, on the fridge or in a notebook by the phone, is one of the simplest things you can do to keep progress on track between visits.
There's an emotional side to this too. When you live an hour or several states away, it's easy to feel out of the loop about a parent's health, catching worrying updates secondhand and never quite knowing how they're really doing. Being on the video call changes that. You see for yourself how your mom moves, you hear the plan in the doctor's own words, and you can gently keep your dad accountable to his exercises without nagging from a distance. For a lot of families, that visibility is a relief all on its own. And because there's no travel involved, you can stay involved for the long haul, not just for the one visit you managed to fly in for.
We think being honest about this is what earns your trust. Virtual is a wonderful tool. It is not the right tool for every job, and Dr. Raj will always tell you which is which.
Virtual physical therapy is an excellent fit when:
Dr. Raj will recommend coming into the clinic when:
Here's the good news: it is not either-or. Many patients start virtually with a screening or an evaluation, get moving right away, and then come into the clinic when hands-on care or Neubie sessions make sense. Others do the reverse, coming in for hands-on work and then switching to virtual follow-ups once they know their program. You're not locked into one path, and Dr. Raj will help you pick the mix that fits your body and your life.
Do I need to be good with technology? No. If you can answer a video call, you can do this, and a family member can help you get set up the first time. Needing a hand with the setup is one of the most normal things in the world, and it does not slow down your care at all.
Is virtual therapy actually as good as in person? For many goals, the research says patients progress about as well either way, and they tend to attend and follow through more when there's no drive involved. For hands-on treatment and certain conditions, in-person is better, and Dr. Raj will always tell you honestly which is right for you.
What if the video freezes or the call drops? It happens, and it's not a big deal. If the connection stutters, you reconnect using the same link, or Dr. Raj can call you to continue. Using home wifi instead of cell data helps keep things smooth. Nobody expects a perfect connection, and a hiccup won't cost you your appointment.
Can my daughter or son join the appointment? Absolutely, and we encourage it. A family member can join the video call from your home or from another city entirely. Many patients find it helpful to have someone there to take notes and help with the exercises afterward.
What does it cost? HWY is direct-pay, so pricing is simple and there are no surprise bills. The easiest way to begin is a $25 Wellness Screening Call. A full initial evaluation is $175, and follow-up visits are $50 for ages 65 and over, or $75 for under 65.
What if I start virtual and need to come in? That's a normal, expected path. You can transition to in-clinic visits any time your care calls for hands-on treatment or Neubie sessions, and you can switch back to virtual follow-ups afterward.
If the trip to the clinic has been the thing holding you back, virtual physical therapy takes that barrier away entirely. You can meet Dr. Raj, get real answers, and start moving better, all from your favorite chair.
The simplest first step is the $25 Wellness Screening Call. It's a low-commitment way to talk through what's going on and find out whether virtual, in-clinic, or a mix of both is right for you. If you're helping a parent, get them on the call and join in yourself. It's the easiest way to get everyone on the same page.
Book online at https://meetings.hubspot.com/raj-pusuluri/hwy-pt-schedule, or call us at (971) 202-1979 and we'll get you set up.
HWY Physical Therapy 2615 Portland Rd NE Salem, OR 97301 Phone: (971) 202-1979 Hours: Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Walk-ins welcome.